Disclaimer: Characters belong to Marvel. Duh!
Author's Note: Alrighty, new material here! The segment with RoLo and the last segment are brand-spanking-new. I stuck a little RoLo in there because, well, I love them!
Shameless Plug: In order to compensate for all the drama that's about to go down in the chapters 23 and 24, I've posted a new romy fic called Sweetest Sin. This story is my attempt to create a purely fluffy romance, with no bad guys, no misunderstandings, and no drama. It's gonna be short, mebbe only 10 chapters, so please give it a try! Pretty pretty please!
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Chapter #21: Icy Revelation
Mr. Lucus tapped his mouse impatiently. The screen before him revealed nothing. It had been days now since he had last had any inclination of where Rogue could be. The leak he had within the X-Men was beginning to slip. Not knowing her whereabouts was beginning to frustrate him. He had guessed that Rogue would eventually take part in a getaway. Most people took this course of action when they wanted to go into hiding. Lucus had been sure that he could still keep his tabs on her, no matter where she went. After all, his "source" was a resourceful one. And yet here he was. His spies had brought him all sorts of information, and indeed he had gotten closer to his mark. But "closer" was not good enough. He wanted a street name. He wanted a house number. Until he knew exactly where Rogue was staying he would not rest.
He had never tried so hard for a girl before. Usually they came dancing into his arms. Rogue was proving to be quite the challenge, and although his frustrations belied this, he was in fact even more excited at the prospect of such a challenge. And he knew she would be worth it.
Mr. Lucus's goal was simple. He wanted to bed Rogue. For a man of his stature and of his wealth, seducing women had become a casual game, and with every achievement his confidence and self-esteem got that much stronger. With Rogue, however, it had gotten a little bit more complicated. He wanted to get back at the bastard who had dared to lay his hands on him in that club. He wanted Rogue's head between his legs as much as he wanted her boyfriend's head mounted on his wall.
And he wouldn't rest, until he got just that.
--
Ororo pushed aside the keyboard to her computer and let out a frustrated sigh. She was sitting in her room, the moon sending beams of light through her glass ceiling. Around her, little rain clouds were dusting her numerous plants with dew, and as she idly waved her hand to one side, the clouds moved on to duller pastures.
She had come out of her bath only moments ago, wearing nothing but a white bathrobe and white house slippers. She had decided, on instinct alone, that she would try and contact Remy. She had picked up on some surprising news and wondered if it had anything to do with Rogue's case. Iceman, aka Bobby Drake, had taken a leave of absence not long after Remy's departure with Rogue. His second leave in such a short period of time.
In any normal circumstance, Ororo would not have given this a second thought. It wasn't weird for team members to take leaves within the same time span. But circumstances had been anything but normal these past few weeks. She hated the idea of suspecting any one of her teammates, and she hated even more that she was beginning to observe and acknowledge subtle habitual differences among her peers. Perhaps Bobby was just visiting an old friend of his. Perhaps not. The doubt was enough to make Ororo feel uneasy, and she had wanted to inform Remy of this information. She had given him other updates as well, such as Hank's recent tampering with the security system, Jean's uncharacteristic use of Cerebro, and Emma's unnecessary withdrawal from all social gatherings. Any one of these could be considered suspicious behaviour, and she ensured that Remy was kept up-to-date. However, Bobby's leave from the mansion seemed slightly more suspicious considering he had just come back from one, and Ororo had decided, while bathing, that perhaps she would contact Remy sooner rather than later and fill him in.
But as she stared at the blinking monitor, she frowned upon finding that Remy was not online. She would have to wait.
'Couldn't get to him, eh?'
Ororo shook her head, her beautiful mane of white lifting to greet the warmth she had conjured up to dry her hair. She gave Logan half a smile as he stepped out of the bathroom, drying his own hair. He had one of her towels wrapped around his waist. 'I am sorry for leaving our bath early. I just had to try, otherwise it would have kept me up all night.'
'I planned on keepin' you up tonight anyway, so it wouldn' have mattered none,' Logan replied, with a wink.
Ororo laughed, and pushed out of her seat. She was thankful that Logan was around to help her keep her mind off things. She had been so worried about Rogue lately that focusing on anything else seemed like such a chore. She had been quite upset when she had heard about their leave from the mansion. Although the leak could be any one of them, at least there were others around to ensure that nothing happened to Rogue. She was safer within the mansion walls, regardless of the leak, than she was out in the open where anyone could find her. Ororo had been a little disappointed with Remy and his rash decision to take Rogue away without consulting any one, but as Logan kept reminding her, Remy was the best protection Rogue had. He had everything to lose if anything ever happened to her.
'Bobby does seem a little unlikely as the leak, though, does he not?' she said, as she glided over to Logan and sat beside him on her bed. 'After all, he is one of the original X-Men. His dedication is deeper than anyone's.'
'That's what I thought, too, 'Ro. But lately… I dunno.' He passed Ororo the comb he had grabbed from the dresser and slid off the bed to sit between her shapely legs.
'What do you mean?' Ororo used the comb to brush through Logan's rough hair.
'Fer one thing, he's been avoidin' me. I haven't seen him at any DR session or anywhere else 'round the mansion.' Logan ran a hand over his chin, his mouth screwed up in concentration. 'Haven' seen Emma 'round much either, for that matter.'
'That woman needs a sound talking to,' Ororo said, pulling on the comb exceptionally hard at the mention of Emma's name. She still hadn't forgotten the way Emma had tried to break up Remy's relationship with Rogue. 'I would love to see her come out as the leak.'
'So's you can be the one ta give her that "talking to", eh?' Logan reached up and took the comb from Ororo's hand and threw it somewhere near the dresser. He turned around where he sat and placed both hands on Ororo's knees. 'I'd love ta see that "chat".'
'I am sure you would,' Ororo replied, watching – with peaking excitement – as Logan ran his hands up along the inside of her thighs. 'But Emma does not have a strong enough motive.'
'Neither does Drake.' Logan let the towel around his waist fall to the floor. 'Let's talk 'bout somethin' else now, darlin'.' He was pulling at the string holding Ororo's robe together.
'Let us not talk at all,' she said, as she felt the cool air caress her naked body, followed by Logan's touch. 'Until the sun rises.'
--
Rogue left the restaurant in good spirits. Remy had been a wonderful host. Upon entering the savvy building, she had been sure that he had dated nearly every girl within it – the way they threw themselves at him. His reputation was stronger in his hometown than anyplace else, and Rogue had to control herself many times to avoid knocking the teeth out of those shameless girls. Remy, however, had shown absolutely no interest in any of them. Not that he usually did when he was with her, but he also never backed down from a good flirt. Even in her presence he was prone to flirt with girls, and although she knew it was meaningless fun, it still managed to rile her up every time. Tonight, however, he was completely oblivious to everyone around him, and focused all his attention on her. It was as if she was the only other person in that room with him. She knew it was a little childish to feel this way, but she felt important.
And Remy, of course, knew that Rogue needed to feel important. If there was one thing he had quickly learned about her in all the years he had known her, it was the fact that she was a "quiet sufferer". Her pride and stubbornness kept her from sharing her true feelings with anyone, and therefore how she felt was often overlooked. He knew better. Although the entire team was concerned for Rogue, what with the new threat in the form of Simon Lucus, and paddled around her in order to protect her, it was not the sort of importance that Rogue wanted to feel. Being important because your life was in danger was not something anyone would desire. No, Rogue needed to feel important in Remy's life, and Remy himself knew how difficult it would be for Rogue to realize how important she really was to him. Tonight he would make her see it. Tonight he would say all the unsaid words between them. Tonight he would finally slip that ring onto her finger.
And so, dinner had been a success. Remy had given Rogue all his attention (regardless of all the girls fawning over him), and that, matched with amazing food and amazing service, resulted in Rogue leaving Mungyo in high spirits.
She hooked her arm with his as they strolled down the busy sidewalk towards Remy's car. 'So, what's next?' she asked, staring up into the streetlamp. There was a mild fog around it, but she could still make out the bright stars.
'Well, I was t'inking,' Remy said, as he led Rogue passed his car and down another street. 'Dat we go for a walk.' He recalled that night, which seemed so far away now, that he had strolled down a street such as this with Rogue by his side. It had been the first time, since they had started dating, that he had held her hand. They had come a long way since then, and Remy could only pray that they could continue to walk together forever. 'You know, to burn off de calories.'
Rogue chuckled, snuggling against him as the cool evening breeze nipped at her cheeks. 'Since when have you been concerned with ya weight, Cajun?'
'I wasn't talking 'bout me, Roguey. You be de one packing on de pounds lately.' He smirked.
'Why, Ah nevah!' She gave him a shove and he went whirling down the street. 'Hmph!'
'Aww, chere,' Remy laughed, regaining his balance. 'I was joking!' He walked back up to her, his hands held up in surrender. 'Seriously!'
Rogue stuck out her tongue, folded her arms over her chest, and continued to walk down the street. Remy did all he could to stay in step with her angry strides.
'C'mon, Rogue. I was joking. You know you look perfect! And 'sides, even if you were… err… expanding… you'd still be perfect.'
Rogue, somewhat satisfied with his answer, and not nearly angry enough to allow it to ruin her evening, linked arms with him again. 'You really need ta learn when to shut that mouth o' yours, swamp-rat,' she said, in a pleasant tone of voice.
Remy responded by caressing her hand. He slipped off his jacket and wrapped it around her shivering shoulders as they continued to walk on. They stopped only when the buildings seemed to fade. He led her to a bench and together they sat down, cuddling close against the slowly rising chill. Perhaps now as the time…
Remy caressed the top of Rogue's head with his lips. 'I love you, chere.'
Rogue's ear was pressed against Remy's heart and she smiled when she realized its beating had gotten a bit faster. She looked up and found him staring out into the distance. His eyes were still but his jaw was set. She knew this look.
'Ah love ya, too, Rem',' she said, slowly. 'What's the matter?'
Remy shook his head, turning his face to meet her eyes. When he saw the concern in her face, he smiled and cupped her cheek with his hand. 'Not'ing. I just wanted you to know dat I do.'
Rogue lifted her hand and ran a finger over his stubbled jaw. 'Ah do know.'
'Well, dere's sort of more I want to say… but…'
Rogue sat straight, squeezing his hand. 'But?'
'But de cold bench be biting into my ass!' He got up hastily and slapped his behind a few times to get the blood flowing again. He ignored Rogue's laughter. He had wanted to propose to her, but it would have to wait until later tonight. 'Where'd dis chill come from?' The sudden cold was getting unbearable. He held out his hand for hers. 'Come, lets get checked in.'
Rogue allowed herself to be helped up. 'Checked in?'
Remy nodded, leading her back to his car. 'De night, chere, is still young.'
--
He had found them.
Finally.
Bobby stepped back as Remy led Rogue passed the dumpster behind which he was hidden. He had been slightly annoyed that they were taking so long to get to their next destination. He needed to find out where they were going in order to relay the information to his new boss. It was very important that everything worked out according to the plan.
Simon Lucus had been very upset with him of late, and Bobby didn't care for another talking-to. He had found out about Rogue's departure from the Mansion at the same time as the others, and had quickly relayed the news to Mr. Lucus. Lucus seemed more amused than angry upon hearing this information, and had dispatched Bobby to finding her location. The location, Bobby assumed, was predictable enough. Where would Remy LeBeau take Rogue in order to keep her safe? Obviously the answer was New Orleans. But when Bobby had sent some of Lucus's goons into that city, they found that Remy had not returned at all. This posed a problem. A problem Mr. Lucus did not like at all.
Wanting to prove that he wasn't as incapable as Mr. Lucus thought he was, Bobby decided to do some personal digging. If Remy hadn't returned to New Orleans, then he was at least close by. Bobby had combed through the neighboring cities and towns, but still there was no sign of them. None of the locals seemed to have any idea who he was looking for, but he had the feeling that they were just covering up for the Cajun.
He had been about to give up when Lady Luck ended up walking into his lap. Sitting in Mungyo's, Bobby had been drinking himself silly before heading back home, when who should walk in through the door?
He had immediately contacted Mr. Lucus, who gave Bobby further instructions. Bobby needed to follow Rogue to the next location, get the name of the place, and call Lucus immediately. Tonight would be the night Mr. Lucus would get his chance, and Bobby would finally get his revenge on Remy LeBeau.
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Author's Note: Dum dum DUM! Lime green fuzzy stars to all the people who had guessed that Bobby was the leak! Still… I do have some fuzzy gold stars… who am I supposed to give these to? You'll just have to wait and see!
And no worries, there's still a little more Romyness to come. :D
Note to greykupo: See, I wasn't a meanie! Just don't kill me next chapter. (runs away)