It's been over a week before Ororo heard from Remy. At first she was worried to what seemed to be no end. She tried calling him but the latest number she had for him was out-of-service. Then she found evidence that he had come home. There were windows open that were once closed. There were new bars of soap in the bathrooms. Various fruits and vegetables in a large bowl on the kitchen table. A couple of times, he would take his motorcycle out and leave the car keys for her.

She kept herself occupied by cleaning, gardening, cooking and painting the walls of the house. She was tempted to ride his Mustang just to see what all the hype was about. Instead she preferred it if he drove her around the city.

In the middle of the night, she was awaken with the urge to pee. When she was finished doing her business, she notice the faint sound of rock music. She followed the aggressive melody down the hall. She stopped at a door cracked open with light beaming from inside.

There was Remy performing pull ups on a walled mounted bar. She stood there comfortably in a daze, spying as he effortlessly rise up and lowered himself with grace and control. Then he pulled his legs up, hung them over the bar and started off upside down. He raised his upper body with his core muscles.

She watched him as if he was the closest thing to watching a porno. He had the perfect built. Not skinny but not too muscular. Her mind drifted into what insane positions they could do in bed? How long could he lift her up? What was he better at, making love or just bed-breaking- sex? She preferred the idea of sex.

The fantasy was trapped by reality. The real reason she was there, saddened her. She knew Remy would never be her own or not in the sense she needed him to be. He was too damn selfish to be with her. Remy's main priority was himself and she was tired of passively excusing him.

"Ro?" Remy's spoke in the darkened hallway.

She almost shut her bedroom door, " Yes?"

"What you doing up so late, Chere? Did the music wake you?"

"No, I had to use the bathroom."

He knew she was roaming around all the while. Ororo has been acting strange towards him. And maybe he has been acting a bit strange around her. They were family but years of distance made them into strangers.

She was the very one that always made him want to be better. She was the one that always accepted him. And now he was lost in this dark world and she is the only light. Maybe she shines too bright. Maybe he is too far gone. She does not even ask where he has been. Or does she even care?

"Are you going to bed soon?" She asks.

"No," he said dryly. "I have some things to do before I go away."

"Do you know when you will come back?"

She still loves me, he though,t " In a couple of days."

She sighed and leaned her head against the door. "Okay, Remy, I will see you then."

You give me something to come home too, he said to himself.

"Glad you could make it." The older man said dryly. He was about fifty years old with a taste for the finer things in life. He surrounded himself with ridiculously expensive objects . Gold trash can. Mable floor with matching table and counter tops. Paintings that Remy would have tried to steal a decade ago. Massive statues. Glass walls and windows.

"When I heard the offer, I just couldn't get here fast enough." He grinned, ignoring the seat he was offered.

"I know you are the best. Right now I need the best to handle my problem." He gesture one hand to his assistant. The assistant knew it was time to pour drinks into the tumbler glasses.

"What is this about?"

"It's a kid, in our business she is known as the Golden Child. She is a telekinesis mutant and iis possible one of the most powerful in the world or in history. Since my company is merging with mutants to change the way the world uses energy and resources, these mutants are essential to the process."

"These 'mutants'?"

"Yes, we have a list of them actually. However the Golden Child is our number one priority. We are trying to obtain the others but this one is your special project" He slid the photo in front of Remy.

Remy took one look at the picture. Well I'll be damned, he thought to himself. " Where was she sighted last?"

"In Louisiana, I had a team to retrieve her but she is not alone. Some one is hiding her. The bastard killed ten of my best men and they both disappeared. We're assuming he is a mutant as well. He fights like the devil."

"Is that all you can tell me? Where do you think they would be headed?"

"That's where you come in, Gambit."

If ten million dollars were not involved, Remy would have told him to shove it. This girl could be anywhere by now. He knew the girl in the bar looked familiar but it never dawned on him that she lived in the same place that he once lived at the same time. Why in all places would she come there? At the same bar, at the same time? She was there for a reason.

Just when he was about to open up his car door, he notice a note on the wind shield.

WATCH OUT

Instantly a truck plowed into Remy's Mustang and crushed the side-rear like a pop can. Remy moved just in time but he landed on his leg. He studied the area as he held his leg, throbbing with pain. He could imagine that it was broken.

He could see no one was in the moving truck. However it was obvious that someone wanted him dead. Remy reached into the pockets of his black leather jacket for his cards.

A figure of a man appeared from the other side of the car and truck. "Couldn't say I didn't warn you, Gambit." said the figure covered from head to toe in brown and black attire.

"Daken!"

" I recall telling you that if I ever saw you again, I would kill you." He continued to walk, slowly waiting to pounce on his prey. "I always keep my promises."

Remy quickly threw his kinetically charged cards at Daken, blowing him back into a store front window.

Daken had a hyper active healing factor but the pain that lingered pissed him off. He stretched out his bone-claws and intended to gut Remy like a fish.

Remy extended his Bo-staff and guarded his body from potential blows.

Keep your distance, Remy. He quietly warned himself.

Daken went after Remy like a rabid tiger. With claws in each hand , Daken fiecely took one swipe after another, mainly focused on ripping Remy's head off.

Remy knew he had to be faster and smarter somehow. He turned an jabbed the staff right into Daken's face, crushing his nose and left eye. Remy attempted to escape knowing he didn't have much of a chance defeating Daken. Daken was a monster with a few screws loose and absolutely no conscience.

Daken didn't miss a beat when he seen the opportunity to strike Remy where he was open. Lunging forward digging his claws into Remy's back.

"AARRRGGG!" Remy froze in pain by being pieced through his right side.

"You just keep barking up the wrong tree, Gambit." He enjoyed watching his victims suffer. " Imani is mine."

"What do you want with her?"

"It's none of your business. You will die anyw- AAARggg?" Daken went down to the cement. Remy had successfully stabbed a knife like device straight into Daken's calf.

"What is this?"

"Hurts like hell, non?" Remy felt a little better seeing Daken in sheer agony. Daken cringed and his eyes rolled in back of his head. He has never experienced his amount of torture in his life. He considered he was dying.

Remy gathered onto his feet watching Daken crumble for the first time.

"I keep that little trinket that's stuck to your leg handy for the likes of you and Creed. It sends a chemical that nullifies your mutant cells. So no more healing factor, you piece of shit!" He kicked Daken face like a soccer ball. Immediately he gabbed his side in vain efforts to comfort the pain.

Remy limped away but not without a final glance at his precious Mustang.

There is a small lake in walking distance away from Ororo's new home. Ororo visited there frequently. A very social five year-old girl who sits and plays in Ororo's hair and ask many questions. She thinks Ororo is an chocolate angel from God.

"Miss Ororo, what is a mutant?

"It's a person with special powers."

" OOOWWW! Do you know any mutants?"

"Yes, I know many mutants" Ororo said proudly.

"Can they fly?"

"I know some that can fly."

"Can they hurt you?"

"Some can, but some are very nice."

Momma said, she had a friend that was a mutant, but they sent her away because she done a bad thing."

"Maybe it was a mistake."

"I don't know. I just don't want them to hurt me. I don't want them to hurt you because you're my friend and they better not mess up your hair because I do your hair every day!"

Ororo could not help but to burst into laughter. Over the weeks she has been in New Orleans, she has become fond of the people there. Every one notice her white hair and associated her with being a mutant or maybe having some other genetic disorder. Some would hide and whisper foul things they wanted to do to hurt her. Some would stay friendly but keep their distance.

"I have to go, Mandy" Ororo stood up while her fingers went to feeling the three massive braids on top of her head. "But how do I look?"

"You look beautiful, Miss Ororo. I'll bring a brush next time." She put her arms around Ororo's hips "Bye!"

"Bye, Mandy!" Deep inside Ororo hated to watch Mandy leave for home. Knowing Mandy made her wish she had a child of her own. If she had a little girl, she hoped that she would be as sweet as Mandy.

When she approached the house she notice a red Oldsmobile parked in the front yard. She did not know what was possessing her to go into the house. But she was very well on her way.

Remy was laid out on the dusty old couch in the living room. "Looks like I will be visiting you for a while."

"Remy, what happened to you?" She began to panic. She hated to see anyone in the X-Men family injured.

"I just had a run in with an ol' friend."

"I hate to see what an ol' enemy will do." She checked his body for other injuries.

He chuckled, but the pain still crippled him.

"Is there anything I can do?"

"Yeah, stop babying me."

"I'm not babying you, but I have to worry about you because you are a fool for getting yourself in trouble."

"Are you serious? Are you really mad at me? Right now?

"I'm sorry, when am I suppose to be upset? Huh? When you are dead and there's nothing I can do."

"Damn!" he bared his teeth in pain.

"I'll go get something for the pain and the healing." She stormed out angry and determined that this will not be the end.

Remy looked out the window and notice that there was a large massive storm cloud coming straight for the house. Ororo was known to wreck things when she was pissed. She might blow away the whole house if he didn't make this right.

He ignored the pain and eased his way off the couch.

"What on earth are you doing up?"

"Stormy, I don't need you to take care of me. I never had a mother and I don't need one right now." He snapped.

"Look at you-"

"Yeah, I am hurt. I almost died. But I didn't. I'm here. And I'm going to get hurt again and again. What are you going to do?"

She looked away with no answer. Wishing she was mean enough to kick him in his hurt leg.

"People are going to die, 'RO...you can't protect me or anyone else of cancer, old age, Sentinels, crazy mutants, aliens or anything else."

"I know that but you dont' have to attempt suicide either. When I don't hear from you it's painful-"

"I came here for you!" He interruppted " I came back for you! I always come back for you!" He professed "You never have to question that."

"Why do you have to leave, Remy?"

"I have to be alone, woman! Every one I love, end up dead. Maybe it's my fate. I don't want this life. I always find trouble and trouble come looking for me. That's just how it is. I can't imagine you having to pay for my past sins, too.

"What?" She starred at him, rejecting his words as truth.

"There are mutants and humans who want to kill me 'Ro. They want me in the ground. I can deal with that. But I don't know what I would do if I lost you. You wanna know why I don't call you or why you can't reach me?This place is a dead zone. And I have no credit cards, no cell phone. No computers or anything that is traceable to me.

There it was. The truth.

They both avoided eye contact with the another. Remy feared the worst. If Ororo left she would be gone forever and he would not blame her.

Ororo hated the fact that she knew in her heart she would not leave him that very moment. How she dreamed of packing her bags and getting on a plane. She wished in the future years that she would have the will to forget he ever existed and there would be nothing to leave behind.

Ororo calmly graced her way to the her garden. She needed to make a tea for healing and pain killing. She made this recipe so often, she could complete it with her eyes closed. Resentment rested in her heart, then love pushed her hurt aside as she worked on her concoction.

Remy was slightly surprise that Ororo played nurse for him. He laid on the couch in the living room observing her undeserved kindness. She held out the coffee mug in his face for him to drink. He looked at the cup and then up at her, knitting up his eye brows, hoping the drink would not be as dreadful as the previous ones he had before.

"Hold your nose." She said without a hint of pity.

He proved himself brave by ignoring her suggestion and swallowed the liquid in one go.

"Oh shit! That's awful!" He choked.

She got a kick from watching him agonize from the thick potion.

"Take off your pants. Let me see the wound."

"Are you sure that's all you wanna see?"

She rolled her eyes, annoyed and not amused. "Take off your pants." Asshole, she thought.

He unzipped his pants and pulled him down revealing the bloody wraps and stitches.

"You went to the hospital?"

"No, I did it myself." He said with pride.

"It looks like it." She lied. She was actually impressed that he could take care of himself better than she thought he could. "Well if you drink my teas everyday it will cut the healing time in half."

"I will be like Wolverine, huh?"

"No, not that fast. You could pull up your pants now." She coolly removed herself from his presence, returning to her garden.