They finished the rest of the drive in silence, but a comfortable silence. Remy let his mind drift for the remainder of the ride, but not before stopping to appreciate how far the two of them had grown into their relationship over the last couple of years. Although they had always been deeply in love, they had not always known the best way to express it. Granted, her powers always created an additional element of pretty much perpetual sexual intensity, but physicality aside, they were both still young and immature. Although he no longer loved Bella, part of his heart would always belong to her. And that went for most of his other relationships as well, at least the ones that mattered to him. It was never a question of fidelity as much as connection. They didn't matter anymore, but he wasn't going to deny that they existed, either. Since Remy was her first (and he liked to think only) real love, she couldn't understand that. As her first serious relationship, she hadn't learned how to deal with conflict, except by yelling or pulling away, of course. He would never say it aloud, but Remy partially placed the blame on Mystique—not exactly a stunning track record of relationships herself. At any rate, Anna gradually came to understand the complexities and nuances of a mutual relationship, and both of them came to enjoy the less dramatic, but equally deep level of their love and trust.

After pulling into the garage, Remy silently helped her out of the passenger seat and holding her hand the entire way, led them both to the elevator, down the hall, and finally back to their apartment. It wasn't a gesture of chivalry or bravado, just second nature. They had finally reached the point where they didn't need to speak to communicate. There were no longer those lingering doubts or insecurities or paranoia about words that needed to be said. Just understanding. There was a time where Anna would have never let an argument go, as if she had a compulsion to fill in empty silence—much like their argument in the car only just a few minutes ago.

But since finally admitting her pregnancy, it was as if a burden had been lifted from her shoulders, and she was willing to let Remy deal with it. He appreciated that. So the first thing he did upon entering the apartment was locking the door and leading her to the sofa, gesturing for her to sit down. He knelt down on the floor next to her and took her hands into hers. He wanted to make it clear that she was his sole object of attention, and he was ready for her to unload all that she had been carrying.

"So… how—"

As if already anticipating his question, she answered "'Bout two 'n half months, now."

"Merde. Deux! Anna, chere…. When were ya gonna tell me? Why didn't you?"

The gears in his head were turning, and for a split second, he feared the worst. "You… you were gonna tell me, right?"

Anna's eyes widened in shock and horror as the implication sunk in. "No, NO! Of course…" She looked down and held her stomach in her hands, even though she hadn't begun to show yet. "Of course I want this! Ah juss…"

She looked up at Remy and licked her lips anxiously, as if unsure about how to approach it. Slowly, carefully pondering her words, she began, "Ah juss don't know… we're gonna haveta support two kids. Mah company won't pay for maternity leave 'n we're havin' 'nuff trouble as it is makin' ends meet, and…ah guess." Looking up earnestly, she finally admitted, "Ah dunno Remy. Ah guess ah juss wanted to have things figured out before ah toldja is all."

Remy nodded understandingly.

When he first learned about Anna's pregnancy with Olivier, it wasn't under the best circumstances, either. He had such mixed emotions about that period of time—they had just recovered from Golgotha when M-Day hit, and if that wasn't worse, Mystique had to come and complicate things. That was definitely one of the lower points of their already fragile relationship, so when Emma pulled Remy from a danger room session that one fateful day, he wasn't expecting good news. His expectations only lowered when he saw Rogue sitting on the chair, staring at the floor with her hands clasped around a tissue in her lap. Meanwhile, Emma was as officious as usual, sitting regally in her tasteless uniform, her stilettoed legs crossed, a gloved hand holding a champagne flute. "Thank you for coming, Gambit" Remy could not stand her when she spoke so disinterestedly. "Rogue has something she would like to share with you." Well, duh.

Still breathing a little heavily from the training session, he stood impatiently with his hands on his hips, an expression of "So what is it now?" on his face.

When she didn't say anything, Remy looked over at Emma, assuming that she was there to provide the "moral support" for whatever verbal thrashing he was sure to receive. Usually, Frost was more than happy to oblige. He was surprised then, to see Emma glance over, almost as if she was seeking permission to speak on Rogue's behalf. When Anna nodded in reply, Emma began slowly, pausing just enough for Rogue to chime in if she wanted to. "It seems that you two have not been completely… conscientious during your… sabbatical in Valle Soleada."

Jesus. Dey brought me in here to talk about somethin' I did in SOLEADA! Merde, dat was months ago.

With a sigh of exasperation, Remy responded, "I'm sorry, you two. But you gon' haveta be a bit more specific… I dunno what yer talkin' bout."

Emma pressed her lips together, trying to re-word the last sentence as delicately as she could. "Well, it seems that an… unexpected souvenir from your retreat has made itself known. One in which both of you play contributing parties." Remy looked at her with an expression of complete confusion, in response, Emma merely blinked a couple times. For the life of him, Remy could never read her face—he swore it was the botox.

Annoyed, he finally turned back to Rogue who was now gripping her knees to her chest tightly. "Anna… you gon' tell me what's up? Or'm I gonna haveta keep waitin' for de White Queen to start speakin' an English dis Cajun can understand?"

Peering up at him with an empty look in her eyes, she said in a hollow but unmistakably clear voice, "Ah'm pregnant, Remy. Ah'm--" she corrected herself, "We're havin' a baby."

Oh. Shit.

Although he knew it was just a figure of speech, for a moment, Remy swore he could feel his heart physically drop into his stomach. He wasn't unhappyper se, or even particular surprised— as careful as he was, he always expected that eventually, he'd have an accident at some point. In all honesty, he was amazed that he was able to avoid the situation for as long as he had. He figured it was be part karma and part probability. He was just shocked that it would have been with Rogue.

"How?" He started before instantly answering his own question and nodding to himself, "Oh, right… Soleada. Gotcha." The more he thought about it, the more it made sense. Although they were only in California for a couple months, they had years of repressed feelings and urges to unleash. Their attitude towards this new lifestyle was the need to make up for lost time, which they did so in spades. Unconsciously, he started pacing the room back and forth, the gears rotating frantically in his mind. Due to his rubber-soled boots, not to mention his silent thief's footfall, for a few excruciating minutes, there was silence in the room. Emma sat like a statue, her only movements following Remy with her eyes. Anna just sat with bated breath.

Performing an about face, Remy closed the distance between himself and Rogue, before kneeling onto the floor to match her eye level. "Anna, chere? What do you want to do?"

At that, Rogue seemed to awaken as she suddenly scooted to the edge of her seat and began spouting off a speech that she had obviously rehearsed several times in her mind. Emma watched on with a bemused expression on her face. "Ah wanna have the baby, Remy. An' more'n anythin', I want you to be its father."

Remy opened his mouth as if to intervene, but she just raised her voice to keep him from interrupting. "Ah've already talked to Emma about it… she can't teach me to control mah powers, at least not yet, an' I don't fully understand the details m'self, but I do know that what she can do is mentally freeze the synapses in m'brain that respond to mah X-genes that trigger…"

She began to trail off when she noticed Remy's blank expression and Emma's staple glazed eye look. Sighing loudly she concluded. "Mah powers'll be neutralized, Remy. Ah'll be able to deliver the baby without hurtin' it."

Remy's eyes widened in astonishment, but he was still too speechless to respond, which gave Rogue one last opportunity to finish her plea. Desperately, she leaned in close and looked at him with an almost manic intensity glittering in her eyes. "We can do this, Remy. We'll finally be able to have a family'n settle down."

She intertwined the fingers of her gloved hand in his, the familiar smoothness of her cotton gloves soft against his bare skin. She lowered her voice and continued, "We'll be able t'touch and be together… juss like ah always wanted, juss like we always dreamed of."Her eyes darted quickly to Emma who was still as placid as ever before quickly gushing, "Remy, if ya ask me to, here'n now, Ah'll leave the X-Men an' start a new life with you'n our baby. Ah won't think twice about it"

"WHAT!" Anna bit her bottom lip and cringed slightly as Emma suddenly stirred from her daydream and stormed over. "That is most definitely not something we discussed. We talked about your powers and the delivery, Rogue. Naturally you'll have all the time to recover you need, but I am fairly certain that there was no talk about you or Gambit resigning from the X-Men."

Under her breath, Anna muttered, "Ah know, that's why ah didn't tell you."

"I HEARD THAT!"

As Rogue gained confidence, she jumped to her feet, and exploded, "Well o'course ya did! Yer a telepath! But that doesn't give ya the right to dictate mah future for me. It's mah baby, Emma! It's mah decision t'make!"

Emma's eyes narrowed dangerously as she crossed her arms and pursed her lips together. "Clearly you've thought about this-- how I wasn't able to sense it amazes me." Never one to admit defeat, the White Queen set her sights on a new victim. "Still...You've been awfully quiet, Mr. LeBeau. Surely you must have a position about this… situation."

Both eyes turned on Remy. Anna's conviction wavered slightly as she realized Remy hadn't said anything, but she remained defiant. Meanwhile, Emma tried her best to suppress a smirk of quiet victory.

"Chere…" he began slowly, gently massaging her hand between his. "I'm not gonna lie to you, not 'bout dis. Not a lot fazes me nowadays, but dis… I wasn't ready for dis." He exhaled sharply, and he could feel Anna shudder in his hands. He ran a nervous hand through his hair as he admitted, "I'm not sure we'll ever be ready for somethin' like dis."

He could hear Rogue stifle a sob as she tried to jerk her hand out of his, but he held on tightly. "But…"

He could feel both women perk up at this sudden development, and he would have made a production of bending down on one knee except he was already kneeling. The best he could muster was planting himself in that position even more firmly. Anna's eyes, already glistening with tears snapped open wide as she stared at him. He looked back at her, slightly in shock himself. He had rehearsed this moment hundreds of times in his mind. The setting and circumstances were always different; sometimes it was over champagne and candlelight, other times it was in the comfort of the bedroom he hoped to share with her someday. He had considered gimmicks such as slipping the ring beneath her pillow or baking it into a cake. There was one ridiculous moment where he thought about hiding it in an Easter egg. But in each scenario, he had meticulously arranged the most specific of details. His speech and proposal were to be elaborately prepared ahead of time—with the most poetic words which would articulate the depth of emotion he felt for her. Right now, his mind could only focus on one central thought: What're you doin', LeBeau?

He didn't have a ring. He didn't have a poem written. He had no plan. He was going in blind. And yet, once he started, the words just came on their own. And they were perfect.

"Anna Raven, I've made lotsa mistakes in my life. And de good Lord knows dat some of dem follow me every day. Wit' de X-Men'n an' my family and de guilds, hell even on my own I've tried m'best to fix 'em. But no matter what's goin' on in dis crazy life, de one t'ing that I'm thankful for in dis life is meetin' you. I've got regrets for every stupid thing I've ever done, but I'd do 'em all again in a second if I knew dat eventually, they'd bring me right back here, to you. I'm not a perfect man, Anna. I'm tellin' you now dat I'm not gon' be a perfect father, either. But if you'll have me, I swear to you dat I will do everythin' in my power to be de perfect husband for you and provide for our family"

His eyes were burning red now, as he struggled to maintain his composure. Gripping her hand tightly he whispered in an urgent voice. "Marry me, Rogue. We'll get away from here, and I'll be wit' you wherever you wanna go. I love you, chere, and for our child an' for me, I want you t'be my wife."

After that, the next eight months were a complete blur. To his elation, she accepted and they somehow managed to throw together a wedding before her stomach began to show. It was a small ceremony, not nearly as large as the Summers-Grey spectacle, but just as celebrated. To their surprise, most of the team was very supportive and even encouraging of the beloved couple's decision. Xavier gave Anna away, and Kurt performed the ceremony. Mystique and Augustus were nowhere to be found, and nobody seemed to mind a bit.

They didn't have time to think about it as they immediately began to try to establish their new lives together. Although Remy was happy to share his wealth with his family, Anna didn't want any of his money or affiliation with the guilds to be traced back to them or their child. That was understandable, but Remy felt it unnecessary to deny the generous gifts from Professor Xavier or Remy's family members. Still, Anna seemed to want to do things "the right way," so with the little money they had saved up from Soleada, they found a tiny apartment downtown.

When Olivier was born, Anna suggested that she find a full-time job with her prior law experience, while Remy would stay home and take care of the baby. She always had a plan, and he had no complaints. As a mutant, Gambit was always used to having one of the "weaker" powers on the team, especially in comparison to Rogue's seemingly endless strength. That knowledge never bothered him, since he knew that as de-powered humans, none of them were in better physical shape or more capable of taking care of themselves than he, save perhaps Wolverine and maybe Bishop. Maybe. As his son's caretaker, Remy never felt the slightest bit emasculated. Anna would work, Remy would watch Olivier. True, it wasn't the ideal arrangement, but that was just the way things were going to be, and so far it worked out fine.

So what now?

"Anna…dat was a silly reason to hide dis news from me, and you know it."

Anna wiped her nose, nodding in agreement. She looked back at him with a lopsided grin on her face. "Yeah… ah feel pretty stupid about it m'self."

The smile creeping on her face was infectious, and grinning broadly, Remy embraced his wife warmly. "Don' feel stupid, chere. Be happy! We're havin' a baby! Oli might be havin' a little brother soon"

Thrilled at his positive reaction Anna returned the hug enthusiastically, burying her head into his shoulder. For a few seconds, they just held eachother. After a few moments she whispered into his hair "Or sister."

"Hmm?"

Anna pulled away so she could face him. "Ah said, 'or sister.'"

Remy's smile broadened as he bobbed his head in agreement. "Oui, or sister."

Anna was relieved that he was taking it so well, so she finally felt comfortable to ask the question that had been plaguing her for all these weeks, "But Remy, what're we gonna do about money?"

Remy nonchalantly leaned in to steal another kiss before casually answering, "Simple, chere. I juss need to find a job!"

A/N: This chapter was a lot longer than I expected it to be, and I apologize if it became tedious. The last thing I want to do is write more Romy fluff. But to go where I'd like to with it, I felt it necessary to provide the backstory for how the characters got to where they did. I tried to make it as brisk as possible. Now that it's out of the way, though, I promise there wont' be any more extended flashbacks or angsty stuff- it'll all be moving forward. As always, your comments and feedback are very much aprpeciated and considered. Thank you for your time, and I hope you'll come back to see what unfolds.