DISCLAIMER: I do not own Wolverine and the X-men

A/N: Thank you to my new beta, Song Of A Free Heart. Updates will be slow

thoughts: italics

flashbacks: bold

Storyline

To save his Son, Gambit goes to the last people he thought would ever help him: the X-men

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(AN: This Chapter is about the worst possible outcomes)

Chapter 25

Everything was shifting and quickly this time, as Charles pulled the woman out of the rapidly decaying mansion. As they reached the front door, he found himself suddenly wheelchair bound again. Turning to the woman next to him, he asked: "What happened? "

"I-I don-" She stated.

"Do you still remember the prior timeline?" Charles questioned.

Silently she nodded, before calmly stating: "This is my fault" as they starteddown the path.

"What do you mean?" He paused to face her again.

"I heard what you said, about never having seen Laura before... I figured every time before this, from what you were saying, they had found Jean-Luc." She began, sitting on the edge of the long-empty fountain.

"Go on." Charles replied.

"...I knew they wouldn't find him that day. But that they would find him soon because that's what you were saying, so I decided I needed to make sure Laura was okay. But now I'm scared because the new memories are flooding in over the old ones, and I don't think I'll remember the important things much longer, so you need to know, before I disappear or however it works, that Sinister knows they're coming. He knew... that's why he moved us out to the farm. Charles, I'm sorry... my actions may have ruined everything." Alice stated as she began to cry.

"What do you mean?" Charles replied.

"You have to try...try to convince them to still trust your word, especially Remy, because from what I'm getting now in the new memories, he no longer does and so-" Alice disappeared before she could finish her sentence.

Charles sighed heavily, whatever warning she was trying to give... was never to be heard. He knew, even if he tracked her down, she wouldn't remember what she had intended to say. Shaking his head sadly, Charles made his way to the LeBeaus, hopefully they remembered that he had been staying with them so they could tell him what was going on. The trip was slow with a chair, and he already missed the artificial use of his legs.

Charles wondered what had been changed, because all around him, he saw differences, decay, and ill-kept yards were everywhere. However, the most surprising change came around the corner of the LeBeaus' street as Charles did.

Bobby spotted the Professor, and smiled.

"Good evening, sir," he said.

"Good evening, Bobby. I hate to ask, but the chair-"

"Yes we were well aware that this didn't happen the first go around. I was injured at the farm. Permanently crippled," Bobby stated.

"I am sorry." Charles replied, knowing full well how frustrating such an injury was.

"It's alright. It's been nearly 20 years, I'm used to it." Bobby stated. "I figured it was temporary at first. Because I knew you had those fake leg things. Then I remembered Forge made them for you, so... yeah. Like I said I'm used to it now."

"What happened to Forge?" Charles questioned.

"...Forge didn't make it back, that day at the farm. He took an axe for Kitty. Kitty herself was in a coma for most of a year. It was terrible." Bobby stated in a low, strained voice.

"I'm so deeply sorry." Charles said, wondering what other damage had been done by the girl's actions.

"Do you know what went wrong that day? " Bobby asked. "I mean, with the information we were given."

"We were intentionally mislead, by a girl who no longer exists. " Charles stated . "What else has changed, if you know?"

"I don't know much, with being an injured junior member at the time. I know neither Scott nor Remy felt they could trust you as a source again, after the farm. They decided to attack the tunnels early, when they spotted Sinister go in with the baby. They didn't wait for back up." Bobby said in a sad voice.

"What happened Bobby?" Charles urged the man to go on, noting as he did, the yards around them change even further. Now there wasn't a single cut lawn on the block.

"Emma...realized where they had gone and followed them. By the time Logan and Rogue got back from the scouting mission to a false lead, given to you by an informant by the way, it was all over." Bobby said. He seemed restless, like he was uncomfortable with the conversation.

"Who was lost?" Charles asked in a tired voice, barely noticing as paint peeled from houses that gained a vacant feel around them.

"We lost Scott that day. Though he lived, he never came back. Emma... Emma was pregnant, but it was lost in the battle. Emma herself never fully recovered, she passed away about eight months later. Remy was severely injured, but he recovered fully after a few months." Bobby said, looking into the distance.

"...And the baby?" Charles asked hesitantly.

"Sinister realized he had lost. He hit the detonation code before anyone could get to him. If only there had been more of them, maybe..." Bobby, turned around. "I have to get home, Professor, it's nearly dark. Curfew."

Charles made his way to the LeBeaus door, hoping that it was still right, but then Bobby hadn't said otherwise. He was about to knock when Remy pulled open the door. He noticed bars appear on all the windows around him, as well as a low lying smoke cloud in the sky.

"Come in, come in, can't have doors hangin' open afer dark, Charles!" Remy stated, as he shut and locked the door.

"Anna, Charles is back!" Remy yelled as he rushed into the living room, slamming the shutters closed.

Charles sat in bewilderment as the couple rushed around the main floor, double checking the shutters.

When they had finished, Anna calmly stated. "Dinner will be in ten minutes, please, make yourself at home." before rushing out of the room.

"Why the curfew and shutters?" Charles questioned as he and Remy headed toward the dining room.

"Timeline shift, eh?" Remy replied. "Light attracts the 'dogs' - tha's what we all call them. Everyone must be inside when they release 'em at sunset, if ya want t' live to see dawn."

" What if you were to need-" Charles began, as he looked around for changes inside.

"No exceptions. De dogs, they see no exception," Remy replied, lighting a hurricane lamp and turning off the overhead light.

"What has happened these twenty years?" Charles questioned in bewilderment, noting the peeling wallpaper as well as the appearance of a gun rack where the china hutch had been.

"The X-men fell, the governments followed. Apocalypse rules all. We are in Sinister's sector." Remy answers simply, while lowering the light as much as possible.

"How?"

"'t wasn't hard. Dere was no one ta fight. Alls left was Anna and Logan," Remy said, turning away.

"And you?" Charles wondered how broken losing his son had made this man.

"Non. I'm ashamed to say, no. I return later, by den it was too late ta change anythin'." He was busy double checking the window for cracks where the light could be seen, partly to avoid looking at Charles.

"Where did you go?" Charles questioned quietly.

"To a very dark place inside myself. When Jean died... I went home. Anna contacted me about two years later, tol' me everythin' was in ruins. I came back t' see if I could help," he answered simply, finally sitting across from the professor.

"I knew when I called him, there wasn't nothin' he could do. But I missed him, so I called him back. I used to visit him sometimes, 'fore things got too bad," Rogue stated as she carried in a pot of stew and basket of biscuits.

"What happened then?" Charles asked, turning to the woman, who quickly served them all.

"We hid our infirmed and the children best we could, then we fought back. But it was too late. Sinister had already joined him." She answered simply.

"So we need to prevent Sinister joining this Apocalypse to prevent this future?"

"We need to stop him, and the only way to do that is to make sure the battle of the tunnels goes according to the original plan," Rogue replied, determination in her eyes.

"How do we do that? I heard that neither Remy nor Scott would listen at the time." Charles questioned, trying to think of a plan.

"Which is why we need to make sure that Logan and I are there too." Rogue replied.

"Is Logan still over on 3rd? I wish to speak to him in the morning."

"..."

"What? What happened?" Charles asked, a sinking feeling in his stomach

"Nobody knows where Logan is, Charles," Remy replied. "He disappeared about 17 years ago. Him and the girls."

"What about-" Charles began.

"We're what's left, Professor. Remy, and I. Bobby's still nearby, but everyone else is just gone," Rogue said.

"How many are in the resistance?" he asked, wondering if they could be used to find Logan.

"The resistance is over. We lost. Everybody's just busy tryin' t' stay alive." Rogue replied.

"Désolé, we held out de longest... mais, our son, he must come first, non?" Remy added.

"Son? Just one?" Charles questioned. He had seen their numbers shrink and grow, but he'd never seen it go so low.

"Our little Olivier. He just turned two last week," Remy smiled.

"He's in the safe room now, down for the night. Don't nobody leave the children up where the dogs can smell 'em," Rogue added.

"What are these 'dogs', are they mutants?" Charles replied.

"De like Loup-garou..." Remy replied, shuddering.

"They're clones..." Rogue supplied, hugging her husband. "Remy had an unfortunate encounter with one, he has the scar to prove it."

"Oui. I had to go out, get to Bobby's... De sunset came 'fore I get home..." Remy replied. "We lost Kitty dat night."

"Sabretooth, only more animalistic," Rogue supplied. "That's what they are."

"Sinister's latest project," Remy added, before standing and blowing out the lamp as the howling started outside.

"They found someone out," Rogue whispered. "C'mon, we need to go to the safe room. Bring your bowl."

The couple lead him down into a steel room in the basement, there lay a sleeping child in a crib. He didn't stir as they come in and lock the door. After they settle onto the sofa, they returned to their meal, ignoring the horrifying howls and screams that could vaguely be heard above them at a distance.

"Charles, please, find a way to talk to us, convince us what went wrong. Because this future...it's no life for anyone." Remy said after the sounds died down while staring at his sleeping son. "I don' want him t' grow up in dis worl'. Not if dere's a better one."

"I'll do everything I can," Charles replied, thinking already about what to say to Logan and the men tomorrow, because going tonight was clearly not an option.