Hey, sorry for the delay...it took longer than I meant it to, but I've just moved and we had really shoddy internet for a while...no wireless until a day or two ago. Boo. So I did some editing and here we are with a pretty long chapter. Enjoy.
Favors
"You've got to get it while you can."
-Janis Joplin
...
His whole demeanor changed and, before she could even register confusion at the mood change, he threw her her into a brick building wall. She would've cried out in pain but one large hand circle her neck, holding her closer to his height so that her toes just brushed the cement.
"I don't owe him no more," Remy growled, red eyes practically crackling now as she coughed. "I paid my debt and he knows it! Y' gonna relay dat message or am I gonna have t' send him yo' broken body as my answer?"
He was serious.
... ... ...
It was also serious that she was not taking in enough air.
"I don't know what you're talking about," she gasped.
"Nathaniel!" he ground out.
Rogue shook her head, pulling at his hands - he had about five second before she used her own power on him.
As it was, his grip slackened slightly; it was enough that she didn't feel the immediate need to suck him of his life energy.
"…who y' here for?" he asked her, eyes scrutinizing.
"Ororo Monroe," she breathed.
"Storm?!" his eyes widened in surprise and he released her quickly.
"Yeah," she nodded, breathing in adequate amounts of air and massaging her throat.
For good measure, she took a couple large steps away.
"Sorry, chere…thought y' meant someone else..."
"Obviously," Rogue coughed.
"Didn' hit y' head, did y'?"
All hate was gone from his face and there was no longer a pretext of rage in the air. She just shook her head, mind reeling from the abruptness of what had taken place in the last few moments.
"Good….so, what's de favor? Y' her friend lost in De Big Easy who needs someone t' show her around?" he grinned easily. "How'd she know I was in town?"
It was somewhat disconcerting how easily he shifted from situation to situation. He was chatting with her one moment, bodily threatening her the next, and then casually inquiring about the favor a second later. He still appeared reserved, but hearing Storm's name seemed to have put him somewhat at ease.
"I'm afraid it's not quite that simple," Rogue shook her head at his hopeful thinking.
From what she gathered, it was an awfully big favor he owed Storm and he was supposed to know as much. Indeed, he looked resigned but not all that surprised.
"So what's it den?"
"…should we get out of here?" she asked, eyeing their dark surroundings.
"Oui, most likely should," he agreed. "I ain' gonna be able to come out gamblin' no more, looks like…probably thanks t' you askin' round bout me…"
"Well you're not easy t' find…sorry if I caused that back there," she added, though she still didn't understand.
"Eh, it was only a matter o' time 'fore dey found out…Henri's been warnin' me fo' days not t' go out- not supposed t' be here, strictly speakin'. Den dere was you and o' course we thought y' were an assassin," he waved his hand in a careless manner.
"Assassin?!"
"Oui. Long story. So we can go back t' my place…gonna have t' be careful, dough - Bella mightta sent someone to watch de roads…" he ran a hand through his hair contemplatively now, clearly less than amused with how complicated things had gotten so quickly.
"We can go to my hotel," she offered.
"Well dat's a proposition no man can turn down," he smirked, eyeing her up and down.
"You're disgusting"
"Dis Cajun is a lot of things," he merely smirked. "Lead de way."
"Well…I don't know where we are?"
"Right, right…"
He had apparently forgotten that not everyone has a vast knowledge of back-alley New Orleans. Instead, she told him which hotel she was staying at and he was the one to lead the way.
"Nice digs," he nodded of the reasonably sized but plush room. "Stormy set you up? How come she wasn't the one to come down? - wouldn't mind seein' her and we couldda skipped de whole misunderstanding."
'Misunderstanding' seemed, to Rogue, to be a light way of wording the fact that he'd thrust her into a wall by her neck. She chose not to linger over semantics, though, since they were amicable once again.
"She's busy teaching"
"Ah, right….could use a holiday, though, I'm sure"
"Always…she doesn't really have time to now, though. A lot's been goin' on."
"I bet," Remy nodded - he'd heard a bit of what had been going on along the East Coast lately.
They fell quiet standing in the room, and Rogue finally took a moment to congratulate herself for finding Remy and getting him to come along with her. Granted, it didn't seem like he had the option of going to his own house just yet, but it was still a win for her.
"So.." he sighed, done looking around and taking in the room. "So y' some kindda telekinetic femme?…cuz telepathic tends t' come wit' dat an' I don't usually like spooks," he eyed her warily.
"No, I'm neither," Rogue denied after she realized he assumed this from what he'd seen in the alley. "I could only do that because it was metal. It's a….borrowed power."
He rose his eyebrow at this, unsure what she could mean.
"Borrowed?" he asked skeptically.
"…I can absorb mutants' powers if I touch them. There's some people I've touched for kind of a long time, and those powers just seemed to stick around."
Rather than hesitant, he looked quite impressed now.
"Well I ain't complaining'. Don' usually get myself in spots dat sticky, so I'm glad y' were around when I made de mistake of givin' Bella de benefit of de doubt. What can I say….a woman scorned an' all," he shrugged, crossing to a chair and dropping into it.
"She seemed a hell of a lot more than a woman scorned," Rogue told him knowingly.
Remy nodded fairly but otherwise ignored the comment.
"It occurs t' me dat you know me but I haven't had the pleasure of a proper introduction," he told her suddenly.
"Oh, sorry. I'm Rogue."
He eyed her for a moment at this, deciding if he believed this to be a real name. She let him draw his own conclusions to that one.
"Well den…might as well get down t' business now. What's Stormy need? Somethin' big need stealin'?" he asked.
For the first time his tone varied beyond bored and mildly interested. He sounded practically giddy at the idea of stealing something important for Storm.
"Ah, no," she shook her head.
Apparently Scott hadn't been kidding with his mutterings about a 'dangerous thief.'
"Well don' leave a boy in suspense," he sighed, still looking content.
Rogue personally disagreed with his use of the word "boy" because he was clearly all man…
She mentally shook herself.
"She wants you to come to New York," she began bluntly.
His face dropped a bit but she hoped this wasn't about to get hard…perhaps he was merely just surprised?
"Like I said, a lot's been going on…some people have died…"
"Oh, well, dere's a good selling point," Remy rolled his eyes as he dragged a hand through his hair.
"Did you know Dr. Gray?" Rogue asked softly.
"Jeany?" Remy's eyebrows popped up.
"A few years ago," she confirmed with a small nod
He took a quiet moment to process this. He hadn't known her as well as he'd known Storm - her he had known for a long time via his father - but he'd met her more than once and flirted shamelessly….she was a nice woman. He was momentarily shocked that he hadn't heard this already, but that's what you get when you become a glorified drifter…
"Anyway, the school's short-staffed so she wants you to come on as extra security…and stuff."
He met her eye and she knew he rightfully took "and stuff" to translate to "X-Men business."
He whistled lowly at this.
"Damn, she don' hold out when she's callin' in favors, eh?"
Still, he didn't seem all too concerned about Storm cashing in her favor….certainly less troubled than he'd been about this Nathaniel. Her back demanded answers to that, but she thought maybe it was best to take things one at a time with him.
"She seems to think this favor equals whatever she did for you…do you mind if I ask what?"
Remy took a moment to be grateful that Storm wasn't spreading his business around, even in his absence.
"…Stormy took me in t' give me a place t' stay an' take care o' me when no one else I knew would…"
He'd been young and stupid, making his life's biggest, most haunting mistake in his desperate search for help…
"Sounds like Storm," Rogue nodded with a smile.
They lapsed into mutual silence for a minute, thinking of their friend.
"So…how long does she need me 'round?" Remy asked, feeling somewhat surprised and a bit proud Storm reached out to him for this.
"…sounds pretty open-ended to me," Rogue answered non-helpfully. "She seemed to be under the impression you might not actually have a place to stay," she added, frowning since that didn't seem the case.
Remy seem neither amused nor offended by the statement of Storm's assumptions, though.
"Thoughtful," he nodded instead.
"Yeah…so?"
"So when's this favor-repayin' suppose t' start?" he sighed, thumbing the corner of the book she had sitting on the little table.
"Umm…now?" she suggested.
Scott would be surprised if she came back after several days - she knew he doubted how well she'd pull this off. It would be nice to show him wrong.
"Well it's de middle of the night, chere," he grinned lazily.
She swore she'd seen his casual look falter for a moment, however.
"Well, okay, not right this second," she amended with a roll of her eyes. "You can crash here if it's safer."
"Merci"
"De rien," Rogue responded in turn.
"Ah, y' speak French, belle," his grin grew a bit - it was always easy to fall back into the habit of flirting.
"Only a little," she admitted, yawning.
"Eventful night, non?"
He go up, too, stretching and looking around.
"A little excitement never hurt anyone, I guess," she shrugged - crazy events, however dangerous, were unfortunately not that new.
He chuckled at that.
"….are we safe?" she felt it prudent to check in a serious voice. "I mean, is that girl Bella gonna bust in the door with guns blazing?"
"Non, I'm sure she's home nursin' her pride fo' now…"
Rogue nodded and grabbed some things from her dufflebag before shuffling to the bathroom to change and brush her teeth. She took her time washing up and shot Scott a text to say she was with Remy.
Frowning, she reread his response before opening the bathroom.
Good job. Don't let your guard down - stay wary. Be safe and let us know what the plan is soon.
Stay wary? Remy seemed perfectly fine to her. Although, taking into account the establishment she'd found him in, she did believe he was of the rough sort...plus there was the fact that he'd physically assaulted her...
Maybe it was his fondness for Storm that was painting her a more agreeable picture of Remy LeBeau than Scott was accustomed to.
Should she be more worried about sharing a room with him? No, Storm wouldn't have sent her to get someone who was going to attack when her guard was down... She stopped when she walked out of the bathroom, and she got a better idea for what she was to be wary of. Remy had made himself comfortable on the bed, ankles crossed while he sat against the headboard casually.
"…what're you doing?" she rose an eyebrow at him.
"Thought we were getting' ready fo' bed," he shrugged.
Rogue was taken aback by his presumption. Granted, her good manners didn't want to make him sleep on the couch, but her social etiquette reasoned that he shouldn't be assuming she was going to let a strange man into her bed…after all, she was the one giving him a place to stay.
"Don' wanna cuddle with ole' Remy LeBeau?" he smirked, setting aside the hotel guide he'd been flipping through just to see what kind of places the hotel recommended to visitors.
"I don't think so, Cajun"
"Y' wound me," he continued grinning.
"I don't know what kindda girls you're used to," she teased, "but I don't share my bed with strange men."
'Or anyone,' a voice in her head reminded her wryly.
"Y' ain' no girl, chere - yo' a woman," he informed her, looking like he clearly meant to earn points with that compliment. "C'mon, I'm not all bad."
She'd gotten closer to the bed to set her folded clothes next to her bag, so he shifted a little closer to the edge of the bed and snaked his arms around her playfully to pull her closer and try to charm her into letting him stay on the bed. Flirting and charm was always the first go-to.
Rogue tensed - no one touched her like this.
Even though she had control now, people at home were too used to skirting her and avoiding even casual contact with her. Besides Logan, no one at the mansion touched her. She knew they didn't realize it, but it was the thing that made her hate being there. And now she was here and he was touching her with no qualms…
She planted her hands on his shoulders to push him off, but he was strong and obviously thought she was just trying to be playful.
"I promise t' be de perfect gentleman," he smirked, rubbing a hand slowly over her lower back.
For as much as this was the kind of casual contact she wanted, Rogue didn't know how to react when it was coming from a near-stranger.
"Cut it out," she shoved at him.
Remy got a hint of something then that made him reel back slightly, and he relaxed his hold on her to eye her curiously, but she wasn't paying attention to him.
"C'mon; I wont bite…unless of course y' ask nicely"
"…fine. You stay on this side," she pointed a finger sternly at him.
"Bien" he readily agreed.
He watched curiously as Rogue, clearly flustered, went to turn off the light and carefully make her way back to the other side of the bed.
People didn't normally react like that…not that he expected her to want to fall into bed with him - she was meant to be here for work, after all - but who didn't like a little flirting and petting? In all honesty, people typically enjoyed flirting with him. Instead, she'd been earnest in telling him to stop. He might've been wrong but he couldn't sworn his empathic powers had felt a little fear…
"Rogue?" he asked into the darkness a minute or two after the bed had sank on her side.
"Hmm?"
"…y' got a man at home?" he asked, since this was the first thing that made sense to explain her reaction.
She actually snorted at that.
"No"
"How come?" he frowned; he didn't see why it was that funny. "You int' girls? Cuz that's hot," he grinned into the dark, enjoying the visual.
A hand came out of the dark to hit his arm.
"No! I just….don't"
"Oh…figured y' had a man at home so y' didn' wan' me touchin' y'…"
Rogue hummed her acknowledgement that she'd heard him and peered over her shoulder at him through the dark, able to make out his profile since her eyes had adjusted to the minimal light. His eyes were open, his red irises faintly visible, though they weren't glinting as they had in the alley.
The scene from the alley played in her head again, reminding her he could be dangerous at times, and she rolled over to face away from him.
"…o' maybe y' just afraid t' give in t' my devilish charm."
"You're full of yourself, su- hey!"
She'd heard him moving and then he was positioned closely behind her, arm wrapped around her waist.
"Relax, it ain't nothing'," he told her with a chuckle.
Okay.. so maybe he'd promised to be a gentleman, but he was also a man in his prime and he wasn't going to lay in bed with a pretty woman without touching her unless she made him.
She'd dropped her hand to his to push him away but suddenly re-thought the move. If he saw it as causal, why not take advantage and relish in some contact?
'Because you don't know him' her mental voice, now sounding annoyingly like Logan, reminded her.
He used her momentary pause and spread his fingers to lift and grab hers, intertwining their hands.
"See, ain' so bad," he sighed, curving his body around hers.
So this was spooning…
She and Bobby had cuddled of course….or tried. It had just never been as easy as this because Bobby had fidgeted far too much, afraid to brush her skin. In the couple weeks after she'd taken the cure, well…
She pushed that from her mind.
Anyway, this was most definitely not Bobby's arm around her and not his body behind her. Bobby had grown into his height more in the past few years but…wow. Remy was tall and broad with thick arms and, even from the short time she'd known him, was so clearly at home in his body. A body Rogue could currently feel behind her, his torso hard against her back...
She shivered subconsciously and silently cursed herself.
"Calm down, chere," Remy directed quietly, sounding a bit drowsy.
Did his lips just brush her shoulder? Or was it just his breath…
Contrary to his words, she'd tensed, though she consciously willed herself to slowly relax. She needed to be a confident, adult X-Man, not a silly girl.
Her mind continued to whir. Maybe they were too close…they really were…this was a probably a bad idea, definitely a bad idea…
"Calme," Remy murmured sometime later as these thoughts kept creeping up and keeping her from sleep.
Eventually, she did calm down and drift off into a deep sleep.
When she did wake, she plummeted into consciousness most unceremoniously and sat bolt upright.
"I'm jus' goin' t' de bathroom"
"What?…oh….yeah"
Rogue had jumped when she heard Remy's voice but then the night came back to her. He must've thought he'd woken her up moving and, indeed, maybe that was what had roused her...but she'd been so panicked because she'd been having a nightmare.
When she did have nightmares, they were particularly nasty. She had Logan's dicey and panicked memories of Stryker's, which now coupled with her own; sometimes, just for fun, her subconscious threw in the memory or two of Erik/Magneto's childhood memories of Auschwitz that she'd picked up so many years ago. In a subconscious sleep-state, her mind was able to weave all of these horrible memories together to make for some pretty twisted dreams. She often didn't remember them, like now, but woke unnerved all the same…
She flopped back into bed feeling very cold and wrapped the blankets around her for artificial protection. She heard Remy finish in the bathroom and quietly get back into bed. He stayed back this time, apparently thinking he'd startle her again if she'd fallen asleep.
Despite herself, she found herself missing the warm weight of his arm.
Blindly, she reached over and fumbled for his arm to tug it closer to her. He obeyed the silent request and slipped his arm over her back where she was laying on her stomach, and she heard a dry chuckle.
"Jus' don' wanna be alone," she mumbled sleepily.
That didn't get a chuckle, and when she next woke his arm was still there. Her clock read 6:28am and she was disgusted at herself for being awake. However, it was rather nice and warm to have another person in bed…
When she finally woke up to her alarm on her phone, she was alone in bed.
It seemed normal, but only for a moment.
"Shit," she cursed, frantically scrambling out of bed.
That son of a bitch had slunk out on her! What a stupid fuck…
Scott wouldn't be amused. Actually, he'd probably like it because it proved all of his opinions of the younger man...
Shit!
She jumped when the bathroom door opened and a little steam came out, along with Remy, clad only in a white towel around his waist. Well this was a scene right out of a movie, and he had the body to fit...
"Morning," he greeted casually, scratching his chest. "Coffee should be done."
As he said it, it dawned on her that, yes, the room smelled of coffee. She felt silly for not noticing it sooner, but his physical absence had been more pressing.
"It looked like y' had used de coffee pot before, so I figured y' would want some," he informed her, handing her a cup full after pouring one for himself.
"Yeah, thanks"
"Y' know…I feel obligated t' tell ya dat dere's a lot o' coffee shops 'round here dat would get ya a better cup dan dis."
"I know, I did find a few places"
He seemed pacified with this and stood there in all his half-naked glory drinking coffee in her hotel room. If anyone would've walked in just now, they would certainly have the wrong impression.
Rogue was certainly trying to focus on something else, but kept darting back to his broad, cut physique. How did anyone get that good of a body? The only person she could really compare this to was Piotr, but he had his mutation on his side….maybe Remy did, too. A lot of guys at the mansion were in good shape from training but this…well, what she was seeing was something to aspire to.
Whether or not Remy realized she was looking more than she should, she didn't know. If he noticed, he didn't make a comment or seem to mind at all as he turned the TV to a news station.
Well, with a body like that, who would mind. He's probably used to it…
She suddenly felt inadequate next to his near-perfection.
"Okay, chere?" he asked, eyes still on the TV as he decided which news reporter he wanted to listen to, flicking between two channels.
"Uh…yeah," she nodded, caught off guard that he asked this just as she was about to take a moment to be a little self-loathing.
"Bien…we gonna get goin' soon, den?"
"Going?'
"…my house," he suggested, turning to look at her.
Right, he would have to pack.
"Oh, duh…is it safe?"
"We'll be fine," he nodded.
"Alright, I'll just shower real quick…"
She gathered some clothes, dark jeans and a more casual gray top, to take to the bathroom. She paused in the doorway….
He had given no indication that he objected to making good on repaying Storm, but she just had a bad feeling about slipping into the bathroom and giving him a perfect chance to leave. Remy looked over when the bathroom door never closed and met her eyes; he must've seen some kind of internal conflict going on behind them.
"I'm gonna be here when y' come back out," his low, accented voice assured her.
She blushed a little and nodded, disappearing form view. Remy would stay, but he would also rifle through Rogue's things while she was indisposed in the shower.
If she had been watching she would've been disconcerted by the precision with which he systematically went through her belongings, for he was well practiced in such things. Remy didn't have any real misgivings about her, but he would be remiss to bring her home if he hand't thoroughly checked. He suspected she was legit, though, because how else would she know everything about Storm? Given what she knew, it would actually be an impressive con, and that was saying something coming from him.
As it was, he found an " ", " ", and "Xavier's" in her contact list on her phone. She even had texts from Scotty - he scoffed at the fact that Scott had told her to be careful of him, and he was sorely tempted to send the older man a rude text via Rogue's phone but resisted. There were also many texts back and forth with a "Jubes" but that didn't ring any bells so he didn't bother with that.
Completely satisfied that his initial beliefs were correct, he put her phone back and got re-dressed in his clothes from the previous night.
Unlike Remy, Rogue did not leave the bathroom less-than-fully clothed. She dressed, put on some make-up, and pulled back her hair once it was dried, making sure all the white strands were pinned back, before going back out into the main room.
"Did you want to go now?"
"Yeah," he nodded after checking the clock on the bedside table.
Rogue lead him down to her rental car and allowed him to drive sine he knew the way.
It occurred to her briefly that she was glad she had been sent to meet up with someone that Scott and Storm knew and who Storm, at least, liked. Though she had personally never done so, she knew team members sometimes went to meet mutants unknown to any to any of them…of course, they didn't typically go alone for that. qAnyway, it was more simple to be sent to essentially "fetch" someone she could comfortably give the benefit of the doubt. He seemed a bit dark at times but, again, his open affinity for Storm redeemed this.
They drove for some time and Rogue didn't mind at first since they were passing some beautiful houses, but then noticed she'd seen the same nice house more than once.
"…are you driving in circles?" she frowned at him with slight accusation in her tone.
"Just checkin'…I think we're safe but y' really can' be too careful," he shrugged as this was par for the course to him.
"Oh…and do you still think it's safe?"
"Oui, I'm confident now"
The houses began to distinctly look older and then they were driving down what she eventually decided was more of a long driveway than a street. It became narrower than a typical street and was lined with gnarled tress.
"You've gotta be be kidding," Rogue shook her head slowly.
"Nope, dis is old home sweet home"
It was a mansion, plain and simple. Xavier's mansion had more floors, but that didn't mean Rogue wasn't extremely impressed by what she was seeing.
It was a towering, white mansion. From the pillared architecture, Rogue supposed that it may have been a plantation once -it certainly had the regal air of being quite old. There was a wide front porch and porch steps lead up to it from both the left and right…definitely stately.
"You own this place?" she checked, impressed as he parked the car in front of the looming home.
"No," he laughed outright, shaking his head. "I had a little place o' my own near de Quarter, but I spent most my time here. Mon pere is de head o' de house"
"Your dad? So you grew up here?"
"Most of my life, yeah," he answered lazily, no longer awed by the place as he had been when he was a preteen.
She'd gotten out of the car to follow him along a short cobbled path and up one set of stairs onto the front porch.
"We expected y' back long b'fore dis," a deep voice pulled Rogue's attention from looking around.
Someone had come out to greet them. A dark haired man with hair long enough to secure in a low ponytail was standing in the open front doorway. His hair held no signs of gray, but he was clearly quite older than the other man on the porch.
"Yeah, well, things got complicated," Remy shrugged.
"I see," the man nodded, eyes landing on Rogue and not wavering as he took her in, waiting for an introduction.
"Rogue, dis is my father, Jean-Luc LeBeau. Pere, dis is Rogue"
"Rogue," Jean-Luc nodded, testing the name out as he continued to study her.
"Dat's her…de girl who was lookin' for Remy"
The blonde man from the shady bar - Henri, Remy had called him - stepped up behind Jean-Luc. Neither seemed all that impressed.
"I take it y' verified she don' run wit' BellaDonna," Jean-Luc addressed Remy but continued to eye Rogue.
"Cuz she looks more willing den any hostage," Henri smirked.
Had Storm sent her to people who kidnapped women?
"She don'…but Bella did show up an' Rogue saved my ass when things got sticky"
"Y' needed saved by a fille," Henri snorted.
Rogue was becoming less and less amused.
"Shut de fuck up," Remy threw at him. "She's a friend of Stormy's."
"Ororo?" Jean-Luc perked up at this and didn't eye Rogue quite so harshly.
"Yeah…she used to be my teacher"
"Ah, so yo' gifted like our Remy…" Jean-Luck nodded, more things falling into place the longer they spoke. "And Ororo sent y' here? Does she need somethin' from us?"
"Non, jus' me," Remy shook his head. "I…owe her," he answered vaguely.
"Well if y' owe Ororo Monroe, y' best be plannin' on paying' up, son," Jean-Luc laughed. "C'mon in."
Like Remy, Jean-Luc's initial suspicious air was gone with this news of Storm. Remy gestured for her to go ahead of him and Rogue followed Jean-Luc inside to a foyer done in dark hardwood, which lent perfectly to the regal feeling of the place.
"So, tell me, how is Ororo?" Jean-Luc asked as they took seats in a sitting room full of brown leather furniture.
"She's getting awfully busy but she's good…somehow staying sane."
"Make sure y' tell her from me dat she needs to relax, and dat a trip to de Big Easy could be very relaxing"
Rogue wasn't sure if she heard a lusty undertone to that offer.
"…I will," she smiled anyway.
"How did she know Remy was here, anyway?"
"It's…a long story. I don't know…she just sent me down here with a few places in mind to check first."
"That woman always has her ways…and I know that school's pretty high-tech," the older man mused for a while and Rogue felt the need to move conversation elsewhere - these men seemed perpetually on guard and knowing someone had inklings of what they were up to wasn't something she thought they'd like.
Henri did the honors of changing the subject before she could think of something.
"So what's de favor, Rem?" Henri asked. "Something ugly and painful, I hope," he teased.
"Non…she just wants me to go up and stay at de school for a while and help out. Lot's goin' on up dere an' dey could use the security."
"…well, dat's all well an' good den…but y' ain' goin now, surely," Jean-Luc was frowning again.
"Why not?" Rogue turned a raised brow to Remy.
"Ah, I hadn' gotten t' dat yet, pere," Remy groaned.
"Well what do you mean you're not going?" Rogue interrogated.
"Now, Rogue, I didn't say I'm not…I jus' can' right dis moment…"
"Think again," Rogue shook her head.
"Now, fille, any friend of Ororo's is a friend o' mine, but we can't have y' startin' trouble"
Jean-Luck was not yelling, nor was he eyeing her harshly again, but Rogue knew there was a threat behind his words.
"Okay, okay, we don' have t' all get defensive," Remy interrupted uncomfortably - he was rarely, if ever, the peacekeeper of a situation. "We'll all get what we want. Chere, I'll make good wit' Stormy…just not right now."
"When?" Rogue narrowed her eyes.
She had been duped into coming here, believing they were picking up his things. She realized now she'd just assumed this, and it wasn't going to happen again. She wasn't going to leave and let "not right now" mean three years from now.
"I jus' got some stuff t' take care of here…dunno how long it'll take," he told her honestly. "Few days…maybe two weeks."
"No way. I'm not leaving without bringing you back with me"
"…den you're more than welcome t' stay," Remy jumped in, hoping to keep her pacified.
"She is?" Henri scoffed.
"Oui, she is," Remy glared at his brother. "She did save my neck."
"An' we're thankful," Jean-Luc answer that. "An' y' are welcome t' stay, petite. Like I said, if yo' Ororo's friend, den yo' my friend….till yo' not."
Again with the threatening side notes.
"We'll have t' get yo' stuff den," Remy stood quickly. "Assumin' yo' stayin'…."
"I don't see you've left me with much of a choice"
He shrugged with a grin on his face, and she understood he'd brought her here before breaking this bit of news on purpose. He'd wanted her to see that he meant it when he said he couldn't and wouldn't leave today.
"You owe me some answers on the way there," she informed him, standing,too.
"First he has some explanations t' give us, I'm afraid," Jean-Luc interrupted. "We have t' talk about dis business with BellaDonna last night."
"Right," Remy groaned.
"De fille can come with me. Tante Mattie will keep her good company."
An elderly woman was now standing in the doorway wiping her hands on a dishtowel.
"Rogue, dis is Tante Mattie," Remy introduced with a look on his face that was warmer than any she'd seen so far. "Tante, I assume y' been eavesdropping' so y' know who dis is."
"C'mon, child; let de boys do deir silly talk"
The woman waved for Rogue to follow, which she did after a sort hesitation, and she heard Jean-Luc say something about the guys going to his study to talk.
The kitchen was huge, which shouldn't have been shocking given the expansive building. Tante Mattie gestured to one of the stools at the kitchen island, so Rogue took a seat while the other woman bustled around cleaning.
"Do you need help?"
"No, no," the woman chuckled. "Dis old lady is used t' taken' care o' my boys."
She seemed to be complaining but Rogue could see her face held a fond smile.
"Y' know, I met Storm when she was here b'fore…she's a very fine woman. A strong woman - she don' stand for nonsense…I like a woman what can stand up for herself an' get her business done. Tante Mattie's thinkin' y' picked up on dat trait wit' Storm as yo' mentor," the woman's eyes glinted knowingly.
"I like to think so," Rogue smiled.
"Well I heard y' managed to get Remy outta some trouble, so y' can't be too shabby"
They lapsed into quiet for a little while before Rogue asked about the mansion and the the woman prattled on about how many rooms there were and how many acres of land there were. Rogue was impressed to find that the grounds of the LeBeau home were more extensive than Xavier's, though the Professor's mansion was larger since they'd added onto it in recent years.
Tante Mattie continued with stories of chasing Remy around every inch of the house and all around the yards when he was younger.
"An' den de boy got it int' his head I wouldn't go after him and drag him outta de swamplands by his ear after he done somethin' wrong….course then he'd only managed t' get me in a more towering temper when I did find him…"
"Now y' just telling' lies, woman"
Rogue jumped when Remy walked in and caught them talking about him, but Mattie didn't seem the least bit troubled; perhaps this was because his chastising tone was offset by a smile.
"Don' you "woman" me, boy," she threw right back, shaking a wet dishtowel at him. "Go take care 'o what y' need t' take care of….and y' take care o' dis one -I like her."
Rogue was taken aback by this. She hadn't been under the impression that they were really getting to know each other well…they'd just been making small talk, really.
"Don' worry; I will. Y' ready?" Remy asked, turning to Rogue now.
"Yeah"
She hopped up and followed him out the way she'd come with Mattie, again taking in the aesthetically pleasing decor.
"I didn't realize I was making that good of an impression," she said quietly once they were a descent distance from the kitchen.
"Well, she jus' knows about people," he shrugged simply.
Of all the things she'd ever heard, this didn't even strike Rogue as strange so she didn't comment and followed him back out to her car. The drive was quiet and they didn't speak as they went back up to her hotel room.
Her hotel room, which was an absolute mess.
It was ransacked.
She froze in the doorway and Remy gently moved her out of the way with a hand on her waist. He grabbed her discarded coffee mug off the bathroom counter and it was soon glowing a faint magenta color as he ventured further into the room to make sure it was empty. She followed after him slowly, feeling violated as she looked around at the place. Her things were strewn about, the table was upturned, the mattress was askew, and the chair cushions were out of place.
"Bella," Remy muttered.
"She was here?"
"It'd be a big fuckin' coincidence if it was anybody else," Remy nodded as he surveyed the damage.
"Well what would she take? I don't have anything she'd want..."
"No information on your or Stormy?" Remy checked.
"…no. Anything like that's in my purse."
Rogue was sure nothing of that sort of important was in here. She hadn't even brought a laptop and had used the hotel computer if she needed the internet…
"How did she even know where to find me?"
"Her an' her lot are almost as well connected as I am in dis city; I wouldda found y' much sooner," Remy smirked.
"I'm not going to bother pretending I know what that means," Rogue rolled her eyes. "But I think you should be explaining…'Her lot?' I know i've stepped into something here; what's going on?"
"Well, yeah, y' did step in a bit o' somethin'," Remy affirmed as he picked up the table. "Y' pack yo' stuff so y' can decide if anything is missing, and I'll straighten the room up."
"While you explain what's been going on," Rogue added.
"Sure, sure," he muttered.
"Well?" she probed after they started cleaning up in silence.
"Y' gotta ask de right questions, chere," he smirked, as if this was a game.
His careless attitude was starting to bother her since she was so keyed up from finding her room in this state.
"What's with you and this Bella?" she got right to the point while she started folding up clothes.
"Now dat's de jackpot question, chere…" Remy sighed. "Bella is an old friend….if she could ever be considered dat. She's part of a family of Assassins an'-"
"Assassins! As in professional killers? …great…"
"Oui…back when I was still a teenager, I crossed her in a big way. Her brother, Jullian, challenged me to a fight…he never did like me much. Anyway…my powers were erratic back den an'…well, he got hurt," he put it lightly. "De assassin's wouldda been after my blood, but deir dad an' mon pere struck a deal. Julian started de whole fight, so dey came t' de agreement dat I would just be banned from home…the whole state, actually."
"You got yourself banned from the state of Louisiana?"
"Mmhmm, on punishment o' death," he nodded as he righted the mattress and bedding.
"…but you're here now," Rogue mused. "Is that why she tried to kill you?"
"Oui you're a smart one, aren' ya?" he grinned sardonically.
"So…why wouldn't you hide if you're back? Why're you back at all?"
"Came back t' help Henri an' Jean-Luc…de Assassin's commissioned a job t' dem…if dey don' do it, de Assassin's are gonna sell a lot of information on my family's…business t' all de wrong people. Jus' happens dat de job ain' no easy thing so dey called me t' help. I usually have advantages with my mutation…"
"They commissioned a job…what kind of job?" Rogue frowned.
Remy fidgeted a moment,weighing how much to tell her. It occurred to him, however, that Storm knew, so Rogue could find out another way if he didn't divulge.
"Well…we're sortta in de business of thievin'…"
"You're a thief? Like it's your job to steal thing?"
'Is that really the best kind of person to have at a mansion full of kids?'
That thought sounded a little too much like Scott, so she disregarded it.
"…more or less," he nodded, though he wasn't entirely sure where he got off with the 'or less' part.
"So if you've been banned from home, where have you been since then?"
"Here an' dere," Remy answered extremely vaguely. "Visited Stormy for a bit…contracted work doin this and dat."
Rogue was aware that this was a highly edited account of the last few years, but let it go since she knew as well as anyone that everybody has their secrets.
"And what's the job you're back home for?"
Remy stayed quiet for a while and Rogue decided she wasn't going to be getting an answer.
"It's complicated," was all he told her.
"Fair enough," she sighed, finishing with her clothes and collecting other things from the room to pack away. "I think that's it…nothing's missing."
"Den dey're leaving' the thieving' t' de thieves…" Remy nodded, surveying the fixed-up room.
"Still feel violated," she sighed, looking around, too.
Remy nodded and patted her back between her shoulders in what he meant to be a comforting gesture for her. He was the thief, not the victim of theft, so he couldn't exactly sympathize, but his empathy could sense that she was genuinely unsettled.
"Let's get y' outta here an' int' a room back home, huh? Ain' nothin' at our place gettin' broke into by Bella o' her friends."
Rogue nodded, imagining that the security at their mansion was impeccable and, at the moment, that sounded pretty great
There we are. R and R =)
