Illegal Seizure
Chapter 6: Introductions
Disclaimer: You all know by now they're not mine
Summary: Remy gets to know some of the residents, and Jennings and Hutch butt heads.
Reviews- at the end of the chapter
Author's Notes: Once again, so sorry for the delay. Thank you all for being so patient. (Well, relatively.) Got home on Wednesday after driving all night, and then our pear tree has a bumper crop. Two days of canning, and we're only a third done. Ugh.
Thank you, a proud geekfreak, for pointing out a typo. I wanted Remy head for Philly, but a lapse in the cerebral department made me write Pittsburgh. So for all purposes, it's Philadelphia.
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Remy woke up to the sound of a keyboard clicking at machine gun rate. Turning his head, he looked over and saw the blue furry man seated at a large screen computer. Turning back, Remy stared at the white metal ceiling He felt a lot better now, but drained of all energy. The blue man came over and smiled, and Remy could tell he was in a pleasant mood.
He talked as he checked the readouts. "It seems you've decided to join us. You were asleep for eight hours. How do you feel now?"
Remy itched his nose, careful for the oxygen tube. It was starting to bug him. "I be feelin' a lot better den las' night." His voice was rough and hoarse.
"It would be hard for you to feel worse. Aside from your knife wound, you were on the verge of hypothermia and all the drugs in your system didn't help either." He said this last part casually, but Remy knew that he was curious and wanted an explanation. Well, he was not going to oblige.
"Guess so," was his only comment.
"I'm Hank McCoy, by the way." He pulled the bandage back and studied the stitches. "Former Secretary for the DMA, current Ambassador to the U.N.."
"An' what y' be doin' here, homme?"
"You heard of the X-Men?"
"Oui."
"I was one of Xavier's first students. With the whole "Cure" fiasco, I came back to the fold. Now I'm here part time." His face clouded, then he shook it off. Going to his desk, he pushed a button and spoke low into it. "All teachers, come to the medlab at your earliest convenience. Thank you." Seeing Remy's look, Hank explained, "I want to introduce you to the faculty."
Remy's nose was driving him nuts. "Hey, Dr McCoy, can y' do somet'in' fo' dis t'ing?"
"Just call me Hank. And yes, as long as you're lying quiet, I can take it off." As he detached it, the hostile man from before came in. He was in a leather uniform, and covered in sweat.
"What ya want, Hank?"
"I want Remy to meet the teachers, and last night doesn't count," Hank added, cutting Logan off. In the next three minutes, they were joined by the white-haired woman, and suddenly in the hall there was the sound of a muted explosion, and a demon walked in.
He was a deep indigo, with yellow eyes, pointed ears and teeth, and a tail. Remy's initial reaction was to recoil, but he could feel the kindness and gentleness the man possessed.
"Now that we're all here, let's get started. As I said, I'm Hank McCoy, called Beast." The woman stepped up and continued. "I'm Ororo Munroe, and my codename's Storm. That's Logan, and he's Wolverine."
"And I'm Kurt Wagner, and I'm known as Nightcrawler. Pleased to meet you." Remy nodded, looking at them all. Here were mutants, like himself, and powerful. He remembered reading when they'd fought Magneto and saved the U.N. summit. An unsanctioned peacekeeping force, they were hated and feared as much as the terrorists they fought.
"M' name's Remy." He smiled. "But I'm a Gambit."
"Well Remy, you're welcome here as long as you like. With the doctor's permission, I can get a student to show you around."
"Only for an hour, and you'll use this." Hank gestured toward a wheelchair. Remy grimaced, but said nothing as he put on a zippered sweatshirt, careful for his shoulder. A sandy-haired teen came down, gave Remy a smile and stuck out his hand.
"Hi, I'm Bobby Drake."
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As the two left, after warnings from Hank, the teachers got to business. "I'm frankly worried about our newcomer," Hank stated. They were seated around a large screen. It was on, and Hank stood in front of it, pacing slightly. "In his blood stream were no less than eight different depressants and sedatives, all unobtainable on open market." He clicked a button and the screen showed a listing. "They were given in large doses for roughly 48 hours, and I am almost positive they were not self-administered. Not only were the dosages too close, but the various needle entries indicate resistance."
"What do you think happened?" asked Ororo.
Hank removed his glasses and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "I have no idea about the young man's lifestyle, his occupation or his personality. But I'm guessing he ran afoul with someone or some group, and not a knitting circle."
"So now we keep the kid, right?" Logan asked. Everyone looked at him. It was unusual, and even more so after Jean's death, that he display interest in anything but X-Men missions and his duties around the mansion. Logan immediately bristled under their gazes. "Or are we gonna kick him out?"
Ororo smoothed her skirt and considered her next words."He stays here, at least til he's well. If we can find out what happened, fine. But this school's not about the past. It's about the future. And if we can offer Remy a better one, then that's what we'll do."
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"So, what's your name?" Bobby inquired as he pushed Remy into the hall. The walls were made of some brightly polished metal plates, uniform in size and color.
"Remy. So, where we be?"
"We're in the sub-level, open to the X-Men and senior students only. Where you from?"
"N'Awlins," Remy replied, laying his accent on thick. In reality, he was studying every door, nook, and hole. While he may be in no shape to go anywhere at the present, one of the first lessons he'd learned was : Pay attention to your surroundings. It could save your life.
Getting out of elevator, Remy swore slightly under his breath in surprise. The top level was a direct contrast to the spartan, futuristic basement. The house was the height of the late Victorian, dark wood paneling and floors, thick carpets and curtains, and the furniture looked mostly antique. Those that were not were chosen so as to tastefully blend.
"Nice, huh?" Bobby said, amused at his companion's expression. "With me, it was the opposite; I saw the mansion first, then the sub-level."
"How big is dis place, homme?" Remy asked, noting the paintings and decorations. Whoever owned this place had a lot of money to spend.
"It's five levels, and over fifty rooms." The first part of the tour was pretty quiet, with Bobby explaining each room and Remy asking occasional questions. Then they rounded a corner and were nearly run over.
It was very sudden, in Remy's mind: The stampede nearly killed them, and then was gone, the noise fading down the hall.
"NO RUNNING!" Bobby bellowed after. "New kids," he said apologetically. "This place is a school for mutants, and we're always getting new students." Now they were in the common areas, and were attracting attention. Girls giggled behind their hands as they passed, and everyone seemed to be rubbernecking. This attention was making Remy uncomfortable.
He let disinterest blanket him, and he could tell it was working- kids' gazes were sweeping over them.
"Hi Bobby!" A petite girl with brown hair ran up to them, her round face smiling.
"Hey Kitty. This is Remy." She smiled at him and held out her hand. Remy put on one of his dazzling smiles and kissed it, rather than shaking.
"Excuse moi if I don' get up."
She blushed, and stammered something incoherent. Then, giggling, she beat a hasty retreat- through a wall.
"Do you always do that?" Bobby sounded irritated.
"I was raised in de South, an' I was taught m' manners. I don' do dat to fine gen'lemen like y'self," he added, and Bobby laughed at that.
"Let's finish the tour."
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General Hutch came into Dr Jenning's office, smoke wreathing him in a cloudy shroud.
"Well?" he demanded, cutting any pleasantries. "Have you found him?"
Jennings looked up at him through her lightly tinted glasses, papers in random stacks on her desk.
"I believe we're closer to finding our culprit, General. I've had the surrounding cities checked, and I'm scanning the police database, as well as the emergency scanners. However," she indicated the papers directly in front of her, "I think our best chance is in this."
"What is it?"
"Put out that disgusting thing and I'll tell you," she snapped, and waited until he'd put out his cigar. "Remember Raven Darkholme?" When he nodded, she continued. "When she turned on Magneto, she gave us everything."
She handed him a paper, and he read it, his eyebrows raising higher and higher. "Is this true?" he asked, hardly daring to hope.
"All of it. We know now that the information never got through to her. We find her informer and then we can continue..."
"No! I'm sick of waiting. You have one week, no less, to find that mutie and eliminate him. Meanwhile, I'll be getting Xenon ready. One week," he repeated, and left.
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"So, what did you do before you came here, Remy?" Bobby asked.
"Oh, dis an' dat," Remy responded evasively. They were outside, and it was warm and sunny, for fall. "Hold up, I wan' t' get out an' walk."
"Are you sure that's a good idea? Hank said..."
"I know what Hank said, but dere be no law against stretchen' y' legs." Remy stood up and they walked at a leisurely pace. The gardens still had late blooming flowers, and the trees were decked in gold and scarlet. It was very peaceful. Remy felt the need to release some pent-up power.
"Where is dis place?" he asked, breaking the silence instead. The more he knew, the better.
"Westchester, New York. It used to be an ancestral home, but in the last twenty years it was renovated." They walked toward three marble monuments, one which had an eternal flame. All had flowers. A cloud passed over Bobby's face as they approached. They paused in front of them, and Remy read the names: Scott Summers, Jean Grey, and Charles Xavier.
"Y' knew dem?" Remy asked, in a quiet tone. He knew death- escaped it, fought it, laughed in it's face, and seen others succumb to it. He was familiar with it, but he respected it as well.
"Yeah. They haven't been gone for more than a week." He pointed to the larger one, which had the flame. "He started all this. The school, the X-Men. He gave a lot of people hope and a second chance." Bobby turned abruptly. "Come on, I'll show you the rest of the mansion."
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review reponses- Hawaiichick- you're a super reveiwer! Thank you so much! Not too much student interaction in this chap, but the next one will have more.
lelann- we all know Remy- he plays them cards close.
knglenn- nope, sorry, no romy. I'm not anti-romy, but I think there's enough out there, and I'd like to give Remy more character development then- "... he was smitten by her angelic looks, reformed for her, and their undying love was sorely tested.". Having Remy in movieverse sort of opens up new avenues, and I didn't want romance to bungle it up.
enchantedlight- thanks! This update came asap.
nixxy311- glad you enjoyed!
Anaii- Don't we all love a good Remy story? Glad you think this is one of them!
AliAle- Happy that you like the last chapter. This one has less action. I had a great time, and I would have tried to post there, but the computer at my relative's didn't have internet access!
rae.keys- Don't worry, I'm not stopping! And no, I don't think I'll have the Ororo Remy relationship. However, she'll be able to talk to him better than most.
surreal green- I like the empathic Remy too. It fits so well with his character and natural charm.
Yersi Fanel- glad you like!
a proud geekfreak- thanks for pointing out the mess up- very much appreciated. And yes, my month's up! No need to be impatient:)
Ryann628- Yay! A new reviewer! I'm very flattered you think this fic's good.
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Review! And what do you all think of Bobby and Remy being friends? I've read some fics where they're at each other's throats, but that seems to be partly Rogue- induced. Bobby from the movie seems like a nice guy, and Remy's going to need someone to stick with him with what's coming up. (This will NOT be a slash fic. I can't abide by them.)