AN: Thanks to , tx peppa, Warrior-princess1980 and Artemis15 for taking the time to leave a review.


Chapter Two

Rogue seemed to sleep well after that, certainly she didn't cry out again and when Remy awoke in the morning, she was still sound asleep. He leaned up on his elbow and watched her while she slept for a moment.

She looked so different. She was still pale but then she hadn't seen the sun in three months so that was hardly surprising, but her usual Gothic makeup was gone and in sleep, she looked serene, almost innocent.

She wasn't, of course. Thanks to her mutation, the ability to steal others memories, combined with her work for the X-Men, she had not only seen the worst humanity had to offer, she had also stolen the memories of a lot of bad people over the years.

Then there was her childhood; adopted by Mystique, raised to be a loner, groomed for Mystique's purposes, to say nothing of being virtually handed over to Mesmero on a silver platter for him to use to resurrect Apocalypse. And now there was 3 months in the Weapon X project to add to the list.

Her innocence had long been nothing more than a distant memory.

When he broke in to the facility plant the bombs, he had also paid a visit to the administration offices and read her file. First had come the regular tests, things like fitness and stamina. Next came the standard Weapon X tests, like pain threshold and healing ability. It made him see red when he realised that they had broken her arm, just to see how quickly it healed.

He could understand that when a protocol was in place, it was sometimes hard to change it, especially in a bureaucracy but this wasn't like using old fashioned, out dated rituals, these were people! Rogue wasn't Wolverine or Sabretooth, she wasn't being tested to see if she could endure having an adamantium skeleton implanted! She was just a kid!

A kid with unlimited potential if they could teach her to tap into it, but still just a kid.

Unsurprisingly, they weren't pleased with the results of her healing factor, but they were fairly impressed with her ability to withstand pain. So much so that they repeated this test often to see if they could harden her a little more against pain.

The whole file had sickened him, but especially reading how they caused her pain. They were creative for sick bastards, Remy would give them that, always changing how the pain was delivered, but that didn't change the fact that they were evil.

He tried to take comfort in the fact that her tolerance of pain was probably due to her stubborn nature and refusal to let these assholes know that they had hurt her. It meant that Rogue was still in there, still fighting them, but it really was only a small comfort.

They had finally stopped the pain threshold tests when Rogue went on her hunger strike. Maybe they realised that without proper nutrition, she wouldn't heal properly and they could do some permanent damage, or maybe they hoped that by easing up on the cruelty for a while, she might start to eat of her own accord.

Remy wouldn't even treat a dog like that, Hell, he wouldn't even torture an insect the way tortured Rogue.

Though they held off with the pain, they began a new phase of testing, her absorption abilities. A pain collar would be put on, then her suppression collar removed. Though she technically had her powers again, Remy had felt what a blast from those pain collars was like and understood that she hadn't had a chance to escape. The pain collars were basically like a tazer but twice as powerful. Still, her file said that she had fought tooth and nail, so they finally sedated her in order to force her to absorb people.

Just about the only testing that they hadn't subjected her to was the most important phase of this project, mind control. It was in some of the other poor bastards files though, how they were literally having their minds fucked to test various techniques. Fortunately, they didn't dare try that on Rogue until it was perfected.

In the mean time, they collected and tested the most powerful mutants for Rogue to absorb, in preparation for her future role as weapon X's new puppet.

He hadn't been there for it, but Remy had heard about Rogue's breakdown last year, when all her previously absorbed personalities had taken her over for a time. He wondered how many new people she now shared her head with. Would the same thing happen again?

He hoped not. She deserved better.

As someone who had used her gifts for his own ends before, he felt bad that he had added to her burdens. It was one of the reasons he had been so intent on rescuing her, because even after she found out that he had used her, she had helped him. But it was more than just repaying a debt, it was... well honestly he didn't know why, but he had vowed to take care of her and return her to her X-Men family.

Remy got out of his sleeping bag and took a radio from one of the bags. Making his way to the front of the cave, he plugged an ear piece in and listened to the chatter.

It seemed that many of the mutants hadn't yet been caught, so and search parties were being sent out through the jungle to try and reclaim them. It sounded to him as though they were functioning like a well oiled machine again, despite the setbacks of last night, and he would expect nothing less from an organisation such as this.

"What are you doing?"

He turned to see Rogue sitting up, rubbing her temples.

"This is a guards radio," he said, "I was just listening in, checking the situation."

"And?"

"They're combing through the area so we have to stay low for now."

Rogue nodded, surprised at how well she'd slept. She was still rubbing her temples.

"You okay?"

"Just the voices in my head acting up," she assured him. "Takes me a few minutes sometimes to put them away in their boxes."

She expected him to react to that, after all, he might know that she had other peoples personalities in her head, but it was quite another thing to be confronted with someone who spoke to the voices in their heads.

"You hungry?" he asked.

She nodded, pleased that he hadn't made an issue out of it.

"I can't offer much in the way of variety, but I have plenty of energy bars you can choose from and some dehydrated food that I can reheat."

Rogue smiled and accepted his offer. He made her pre-sweetened porridge and heated it with his powers. Being made for campers and hikers, it used sugar rather than sweeteners which was good, because Rogue needed all the calories she could get right now.

"Eat it slowly," he advised. "You aren't used to eating too much so it could make you ill."

Rogue took his advice.

They spent the rest of the day playing cards and Remy taught her to play poker. She wasn't very good but they weren't playing for money or anything. When the sun began to set, Remy set about doing his usual exercises, or rather he did what he could without access to equipment.

He winced a lot but she didn't ask why. Since she'd reacted so strongly to his query last night, he was careful not to ask anything about what had happened to her in the facility. She in turn seemed content to ignore any pain of his that might have been caused by what Weapon X had done to him.

After watching him for a few moments, Rogue decided that she too should try to get back into shape. She had hoped that now her powers were back, it would be easier than she had expected, but sadly they couldn't save her from malnutrition and inaction. After just five sit up's she could feel the burn.

She noticed Remy watching her carefully but he didn't comment. Compared to what he was doing, like press-ups while in a handstand and back flips, Rogue was going incredibly easy, but it still hurt like a bitch. The pain, as well as her envy at Gambit for being in a better physical state, made her irritable all evening and they went to sleep early.

The next day was much the same, although they both made an effort not to upset each other. Unfortunately that made for a tense and mostly silent atmosphere.

Remy gave Rogue most of the hot food since her need was greater, which made Rogue feel patronised and although she didn't say anything, it soured her mood.

They were similar enough that Remy understood how she felt. It was hard enough showing weakness to a close friend, and whatever their relationship, he was certainly not a close friend to Rogue. Not yet.

She had nightmares again each night and Remy would sooth her into a more peaceful slumber. She would probably see that as a form of weakness though, so he was careful to wake up before she did so that she would never know.

On the third day he decided that it was probably time to leave and began packing up the things that they would need. Rogue was still weak but she had regained a surprising amount of strength in such a short time. She might not be fast, but he would help her on the trek.

"What's going on?" she asked, waking to see him packing their things.

"The search has moved onto local towns," he informed her. "Now is the best time to make a break for it."

"Shouldn't we stay put until they call the search off?" He could hear the fright in her voice. Although they'd only been here three nights, this place was already a home of sorts, a safe haven.

"They've put too much into this project, so they're probably never going to call it off," he confessed. "As it is, the net is widening, making it easier for us to slip through."

Remy carried on packing so that she didn't feel uncomfortable under his scrutiny. He watched her from the corner of his eye thought, and saw her twisting her hands nervously.

"Besides, the sooner we leave, the sooner you can get back to your friends, non?"

Her hands stilled and she took a deep breath. "Okay, let's get this show on the road then."

They had to leave a lot of stuff in the cave, anything that they wouldn't need, and Remy packed a backpack with their food, water, their few clothes and then tied their sleeping bags to it.

He saw Rogue smile as he pulled out his trench coat.

"You brought that?" she asked with a teasing smile as she tied her boots.

"Never leave home without it," he smiled back. He slung the backpack over his shoulder and they left the cave.

"Aren't you going to turn the image inducer off?"

"The longer it takes them to find the cave, the bigger head start we'll have," he explained.

The terrain was rough and uneven so it was slow going but they were finally making decent progress. To begin with Remy had gone easy on Rogue, knowing that she was out of shape and had been through an ordeal. All that did how ever, was make her whine, bitch and moan. If he had a dollar for every time that she couldn't do it or that she needed to rest, he'd be a very rich man. Well, an even richer man.

They needed to get to the town and across the boarder as soon as possible though, and while he knew that Rogue was capable of pushing herself harder, being understanding and even tempting her with the idea of seeing her friends again wasn't working.

"Mon dieu," he finally cried. "I never knew that the X-Men were such a bunch of whiney-ass pansies!"

If looks could kill he'd be a dead man, but it had the desired effect and Rogue shut up and pushed herself just to prove him wrong. He felt bad bout angering her but tried to tell himself that it was for the best. It didn't matter if she hated him after all, just as long as he could get her to safety.

They spent the night in their sleeping bags at the base of a hill, which afforded them some protection from the elements. They didn't talk much, just ate and slept. They didn't talk much as they hiked either, but Remy could live with that.

It took a day and a half of hiking to reach the next town, which wasn't the closest, but it was big enough that they should be able to blend in fairly well.

They stopped in the trees as they neared the town, and Remy rummaged through he pockets of his trench coat until he found two baseball caps.

"Here," he handed her a baseball cap. "Hide your white streaks under that."

She jammed the hat on her head as he did the same, then he slipped on a pair of dark glasses to hide his eyes.

"You missed a bit," he said as he looked at her. "Keep still." Careful not to touch her skin, he pushed the stray strands of white hair under the cap.

It was an oddly intimate gesture and to be honest, he was surprised that she let him. He decided it was best not to dwell on it though, and they headed into the town.

"Where's the car?" she asked. He turned to look at her and noticed that she appeared stiff and frightened. She also looked dishevelled, though that probably wasn't unusual for hikers.

"Close," he assured her. "Try to relax, hein? Fake it if you have to."

Rogue looked surprised but then she nodded and made an effort to relax her posture.

They headed down a few streets, then Remy led her into a run-down block of flats. It was clear that they were in one of the less salubrious parts of town. There were people in the stairwell, some talking with each other, and others just sitting on the stairs, watching. Rogue suspected that they might be high. She wanted to know what they were doing here but she didn't want to say anything in front of an audience.

They headed up two flights of stairs, then Remy knocked on a door. The man who answered was thin and wiry, poorly dressed and probably a drug addict or dealer himself. He looked at Remy, nodded, then disappeared for a moment. When he returned, he had another backpack and a set of keys, which he handed to Remy. Rogue didn't see what Remy gave him in return but if she had to guess, she'd say money.

He nodded to his 'friend' and they left.

"What was that?" Rogue asked as they got back onto the street.

"Local drug dealer. He knows how to avoid from the law in these parts, so I left the car in his care."

He led them to some lockup's. The doors and sometimes the whole structures were made from wood, often rotting and though most had a padlock, they would be pitifully easy to break into. Even Rogue's untrained eye could see that, but she guessed that there probably wasn't enough of value inside them to steal anyway.

Remy opened up one of the worse looking lock-ups and Rogue could see a car inside. It looked like something that might have survived a demolition derby, it was that old and battered.

Remy looked around the lockup for a moment, then placed the new backpack on the hood of the car and rummaged inside.

"Here," he said, throwing her a pack of baby wipes. "It's not a shower but it's better than nothing. There's more clothes in here too." he took some clothes for himself, then handed the backpack over to her.

Rogue nodded her thanks and headed behind the car, where she would have a little privacy. Remy pulled the doors to and she was pleased to see that he kept his back turned while he 'washed' and changed.

"You sure this car will get us to the border?" Rogue asked.

"Don't worry, chère," she could hear the smile in his voice. "She may not look pretty but she's got guts."

"Couldn't we get a hire car?"

"This is a very poor region, chère, the only tourists who come here are slumming it. If we drive around in a top of the range Buick, we'll be made for sure."

She supposed that made sense.

Though far from perfect, she felt better after using the wipes and was pleased that Gambit had thought to bring clean clothes. She crammed her hair back under the cap, taking more care to hide her streaks this time, then packed her dirty clothes into the backpack.

"Check the bottom," Remy called over. "There's a wallet, ID and passport to get you back to the states."

His back was to her as he ran the wipes over his torso and Rogue took a moment to admire his form. He really was quite a remarkable specimen of manhood. Not quite as muscular as Wolverine, but then she thought he had too much muscle it was a bit of a turn off.

Realising that she was staring, and liable to get caught again, she turned her attention to the backpack. It look her a few minutes of searching through miscellaneous items before she declared "There's nothing in here."

Remy turned her her and smiled. He was still shirtless and she couldn't help but look as he stepped up to her.

"I said the bottom." He took the pack from her and turned it upside down. He ran one finger along a seam and to Rogue's surprise, it came apart, having been held together by Velcro. He fished out two objects and handed them to her with a smug smile on his face.

Rogue blushed. He was a thief after all, she should have thought to look for a hidden compartment.

He went back and pulled a shirt on as Rogue looked through he passport and wallet. Both her Passport and drivers license had a picture of her, though her white streaks had been photoshopped to brunette.

"Where the hell did you get a picture of me, swamp rat?"

"Bayville High," he said with a smile. "It's the one from your student ID.

She looked again and did recognise it.

"And why did you change my hair?"

"Too distinctive" he explained, pulling a shirt on. "You ready?"

Rogue nodded and got into the passenger side as he opened the garage doors. Remy put his coat and the other backpack on the back seat but Rogue kept hers on her lap, determined to look for other hiding places.

Remy smiled as he observed her. There were a few other hidden treats in there, he'd leave her to find them.

As they pulled out of the lock up's, Remy paused to look at someone a little way down the street. Then he noticed a second suspicious man. They were trying to look like everyone else, and they had succeeded in terms of their wardrobe. Unfortunately everything else about them, from their haircut to their posture, screamed military. They didn't seem to notice Remy or the car, so he drove away slowly, observing them in his rear view mirror as they headed down the street.

It could just be a coincidence, he knew, after all they had moved the search out to local towns, but appearing on the same street as them was just too much of a coincidence. He wondered if the drug dealer he'd left the backpack and keys with with had told on them. Then he wondered how he would possibly know who to turn them in to. Maybe Weapon-X's reach was further than Remy had thought and extended to the police or TV. Or they could just have put up missing posters or something, offering a reward for information.

It was impossible to tell but Remy didn't relax until they had left the town limits. Rogue was still busy discovering hidden pockets in the backpack, so thankfully she hadn't noticed.

She discovered the cash, butterfly knife and lock picks fairly quickly, then she found the phone.

"Don't turn it on," he warned. "The GPS is disabled but all phones can be traced to a degree, so no calls until we're sure that we're safe."

Rogue looked tempted to disobey for a moment, then shrugged and put the phone away again.

Next the found a number of small, clear bags, each filled with twenty or so pills and enclosed in a larger clear bag.

"Remy!" she held them up. "Are these drugs?"

"Oui." He couldn't help the smirk that formed on his lips. "But don't worry, chère, they're prescription stuff. Antibiotics, painkillers, that kind of thing."

"Do you always carry them?"

"When I'm on a job, I do. If a thief is injured, we can't exactly go crawling to the hospital and risk being caught, can we? Let's see how quickly you can find the first aid kit."

Rogue frowned but continued her search. Five minutes later she discovered what looked like a travel sewing kit but opened it to see that it was the first aid kit. It had antiseptic wipes, band aids, suture and thread, as well as a tube of super glue.

"What's this for," she held the glue aloft. "In case you break a nail?" she asked acerbically.

"No," he smirked. "We use it to treat deeper wounds until we can get to a guild doctor."

"You can close wound with glue?"

"The right type of glue, sure."

"So is this like a standard kit?"

"Every guild backpack comes with it," he smiled. "Why, you want one?"

"No!" she said a little too quickly.

Remy's grin widened. "There's just one pocket you missed," he teased. "And what's in there is not standard issue."

When the sun began to set Remy turned off the highway into the nearest town and booked them into a motel overnight. He was confident that they should have outrun the searchers by now.

"One room?" Rogue asked as they unlocked the door.

"If they do catch up with us, I want us to be together." He dumped his backpack on one of the twin beds. "If you don't mind, I'll grab a quick shower first then go and find us something to eat."

She nodded her agreement.

"Don't open the door to anyone while I'm in here, and especially not while I'm out."

"Okay." In truth, she was beginning to feel a little overwhelmed, so she agreed without comment.

Remy came out of the bathroom not five minutes later, looking damp but clean. He closed the curtains and warned her not to open them. Rogue nodded but she hadn't moved since he went into the shower. He made his way over to her and bent down so he was on her level.

"Rogue?"

She finally looked at him.

"You okay?"

She nodded.

"Go take a shower while I'm gone, okay? It helps to keep busy."

Rogue frowned but nodded. Remy went to the door but stayed there and she realised that he wasn't going to leave until she made a move.

"Okay, fine, I'll take a shower!" she got up and grabbed her backpack, rolling her eyes as she did so.

Remy smiled and left but his smile fade a soon as he closed the door. Rogue was going to need some serious therapy to get over what happened to her, but he somehow doubted that she would be a willing patient.


Rogue felt better after her shower, especially to have clean hair. She would never again take hot water for granted, she decided. She was just brushing her hair, thankful that Gambit had thought to bring shampoo and even conditioner, when he returned.

"How do you like empanadas?" he asked.

"As long as they're not dehydrated, it's a definite improvement on late." She smiled, so he knew she was only teasing.

They ate in silence, both relishing the taste of proper food, then Rogue went back to searching her backpack for the last pocket but couldn't find it.

"I give up," she finally said.

Remy reached over and unzipped the front pocket, then just inside there was another, much finer zip that ran in the opposite direction which he opened. Rogue dove into the pocket as soon as he took his hand away and came out with her prize.

Rogue just stared at it for a few moments.

"I didn't know what type you preferred, but that's Mercy's favourite."

Rogue's eyes began to sting, which was silly really. Considering everything that he'd done for her, a chocolate bar was really the least of it, but it was such a thoughtful gesture.

"Who's Mercy?" she asked, trying to distract herself.

"My sister in law. Why, you jealous?"

"You wish, swamp rat."

"What? You already got a pet name for me," he smiled and though Rogue wished that she could scowl at him. Instead she couldn't help smiling and so had to settle for rolling her eyes instead.

She opened her chocolate bar and lay back on her bed to savour each mouthful. Remy watched her, enjoying her enjoyment.

"So, are you close to your brother?" she asked.

"Closer than my father, if that's what you mean." Realising that he was staring, he lay down on his bed, staring up at the ceiling. "Dad treated us both he same, so we're actually pretty close."

"You bonded over your mutual grievances," she said with a knowing smile, turning to look over at him.

"I guess. Henri's still there though, so I don't get to see him much."

"And Mercy, what's she like?"

Remy smiled as he thought of her. "Your typical southern spitfire. She's blonde haired and beautiful, far too good for the likes of my brother."

"You sound like you've got a little crush there," she teased.

"Well, if I was ever going to go after an older woman, I think I'd choose her."

"Your brother wouldn't mind?"

"Eh, he'd forgive me eventually. Mercy though, she'd kick my ass twelve ways to Sunday." He winked at her. "Seriously though? If I envy my brother anything it's not her as such, it's more what they share."

Rogue turned onto her side, propping her head up on her elbow. Remy mirrored her position.

"What do you mean?"

"They're like this team, there's some kind of unbreakable bond between them. They fight, sure, they have some real doozies sometimes, but even when they're mad at each other, they've still got each others backs, you know?"

Rogue thought of Scott and Jean. "Yeah," she said softly. "I know what you mean."

Remy watched her for a moment. "You still crushing after the Summers boy?"

Rogue looked up sharply. She considered lying for a moment but she knew that she'd been rumbled. "I did have a crush but it's not that I want him any more. It's more like what you said, I envy what they have together." She looked down at her bedclothes and began picking at the material. "It hurts that I'll never have that."

"Who says you won't?"

Rogue just shrugged.

"Rogue?"

She didn't answer for a long while, then she gave a long sigh. "What? You know that no one's gonna want me, Gambit."

"Why ever not?"

Rogue glared at him.

"Chère, love has little to do with sex. Believe me, there is someone out there for you, someone who will love you like you deserve to be loved, if you'll let them."

"Yeah, right." Rogue scoffed.

Remy wished that he could go over to her and show her exactly how much he wanted to be that man, but he didn't think he'd be well received.

"You want some?" Rogue said, offering him her chocolate bar.

Considering how much the bar had meant to her, the gesture meant a lot.

"I wouldn't deprive you of your one luxury, chère,"

Rogue rolled her eyes, pulled off a chunk and threw it at him.

"Just say thank you, swamp rat."

"Thank you, swamp rat." Remy grinned and popped the chocolatey in his mouth.

"Funny." Rogue smiled, though she did her best to contain it. "You should audition for America's Got Talent," she said, deadpan.

"You're not the first to suggest it, chère, but I don't think they consider exuding sexuality to be a talent."

Rogue threw her pillow at him.

"If you wanted to share my bed, all you have to do is ask."

"God, don't you ever stop?"

"I try not to, chère." He had meant to to sound humorous but in truth it came out a little sad.

'Because what happens when the laughter stops?' Rogue thought, though she didn't say so out loud. She had her defences too. She used her temper and sarcasm, he used his wit and charm. At least his defence mechanism made people smile.


Rogue awoke in a cold sweat, the smell of antiseptic still stinging her nose, though it was quickly fading now that she was conscious. She took a few deep, shuddering breaths as she tried to calm down enough to get back to sleep. She knew that it was futile though, she had so much adrenalin flooding through her system right now that it would take an elephant tranquilliser to fell her.

No, for the next few hours at least, it would just be her and her thoughts, the awful memories replaying behind her eyes, over and over like some kind of demented DVD. She could talk to some of the personalities in her head, but that was no guarantee that they'd calm her. Many of the new ones had been in the facility with her and so that was a frequent topic of conversation.

"Go back t' sleep, chère," came a mumbled phrase and Rogue froze as she realised that she wasn't alone in the bed. Suddenly she could feel something rubbing small circles on her back.

Well at least he wasn't dead.

"Remy's here, I won' let anyt'in' happen to y'. Sshh, 's over now, y' safe."

Rogue suddenly realised that this wasn't a new thing. Remy was hardly conscious and yet he was repeating a string of comforting words, as though he'd done this a hundred times before. She turned her head slowly to see that while he was under the comforter, he was above the blanket, which provided a handy barrier between them.

She realised that maybe he had done this a hundred times before. He was always awake before her after all, so there was no saying definitively where he slept. Plus, she had slept better in the last few days than she could remember since she'd been taken, even though they'd been sleeping in a cave and out in the open. Was that his doing?

She should probably feel shocked and had he been awake, she would have kicked his ass to the the Antarctic and back, but his deep and steady breathing told her that he was asleep again. She realised suddenly that she didn't feel as worked up as she usually did after a nightmare, and that the hand resting on her back was actually rather soothing.

It had been so long since she could remember anyone holding her in any affectionate way, and she'd never dreamed that anyone could be crazy enough to want to share a bed with her. But here she was, sleeping with a gorgeous man.

Since he was asleep, her pride didn't feel too offended, so she turned her head back around and tried to focus on the weight of his hand where it rested in the small of her back. She quickly drifted off to sleep again.


Reviews are like cookies for the muse :D