Disclaimer: Lykeios is mine! I guess I forgot those two ganster people from the other chapter, as if I care. But Lucky is MINE, dammit! ALL MINE! MwAhAhA! O.o And didn't I already say that "Marie" wasn't mine? "A New Day Has Come" is by Celine Dion and is on her CD by the same name.
Yeah anyway Rogue and Logan came early to the Institute in this one... And Logan's back, and is now a teacher in the Danger Room. Because I said so. Rogue and Marie are the same age. Word of caution: I HATE BOBBY WITH MY WHOLE ENTIRE BEING!! So you'll see alot of that. Now I also don't like Shawn Ashmore... I LOVE CHRISTOPHER RALPH! Sorry... I decided I'm not translating the French if no one around Marie can understand it. Especially the long rants. Let's give the beginners a chance to practice, shall we? Sorry! I feel special. On!
A New Day Has Come
"Papa?" Marie called out. It was dark all around her, but she kept on walking. She had to find her Papa, she just had to...
"Papa? Où-es tu? Papa, s'il te plaït, me reviens!" (Where are you? Please, come back to me!)
Marie suddenly came to a door. Without hesitating, she twisted the doorknob and stepped through.
Marie opened her eyes.
She sat up, with a few pains. She looked around and found she was in a white room, lying on a white bed, and a tray table was to her right. There were a few doctor's tools, and a plate with what looked like dinner on it. There was no one else around.
Marie began to grow frightened.
"Papa? Papa!" she sobbed, as every memory came flooding back. She even checked her ears, and sighed as she found her earrings were still there, and not stolen. After a few minutes, which seemed like seconds at the same time, she calmed herself down and focused on the dinner. Since she *was* hungry, and there was no one around to tell her *not* to...
Marie gobbled down the dinner hungrily, drowning her sorrows in food. When she finished, she set the plate down and decided to get up. She winced from the pain, but it was soon forgotten when she realized what she was wearing.
It certainly wasn't her new dress, that was for certain.
A gray hooded sweatshirt was the only thing covering her upper body. Not even a bra. She was relieved to find that she had on underwear, at least. And a pair of gray sweatpants. They didn't even match hues. But her feet were bare.
Good for sneaking around.
Marie searched the room for her belongings, if any, but found none. She slowly inched towards the door, peeked out, and, finding no one, creeped down the hallway.
"Ah, good! You're up!" A soothing voice said.
Rémi groaned and opened his eyes. He saw a bunch of familiar, safe faces peering down at him. He struggled to sit up, but the hands pushed him back down.
"No, no, Rémi, you need to rest," Jean Grey said.
Rémi grinned and did as told. He looked over at Professor Charles Xavier and nodded briefly.
"Prof..." he mumbled.
"Gambit," the Professor nodded back.
"Hello, Rémi," Ororo softly smiled.
"Petite!" Rémi grinned back.
"You got yourself into quite a mess back there," Jean said. "You're lucky we came when we did, you would've bled to death if we hadn't, and where would that little girl be now?"
"Little girl..." Rémi's eyes widened. "Marie! Marie, où-est ma fille? Je veux la voir, je doit la voir! Comment est elle? Elle est d'accord? Marie!" (Marie! Where is my daughter? I want to see her, I must see her! How is she? Is she okay? Marie!)
Rémi struggled to get up, to look for his little girl, and the hands flew up to stop him, but they weren't needed. The pain beat them to it.
Rémi cried out, the pain searing through him. He grimaced, and immediately his hands reached for his side. He collasped back to the bed with a loud slam, but he forced a grin when he saw everyone's concerned faces.
"Rémi, calm down, you're in no shape to start walking yet."
"Yeah, you ain't me, French Fry." In their panic, no one had noticed Logan walk in.
Rémi grinned. "Yeh, two would be too much for de world."
"Ha ha," Logan mocked. "I just came from that little girl's room, she was sound asleep. She's okay, Frenchie, just a little beat up. So don't have a cow."
"Who is that girl, anyway, Rémi?" Ororo asked. She had turned a little pale, but no one seemed to notice except Rémi. He made a mental note to talk to her when he had the chance.
"She's ma petite fille," Rémi said aloud, providing no other explanation.
All eyes turned to Ororo for a translation. She sighed.
"I'm not that good. He went too fast." She stared at Rémi. "Either say it in English or go slower, Rémi."
Rémi acted like he had been shot, like the words had wounded him. Then he grinned.
"Elle... est... ma... petite... fille," he said, dragging the words.
Ororo paled even more. "That's what I thought..."
"What? What did he say," Jean asked her friend concernedly.
"Marie... She's..." Ororo stuttered. "She's his daughter!"
All eyes focused on Rémi, who had his usual smirk on his face.
"Adopted."
Everyone sighed in relief, and the tension in the air lessoned somewhat.
"But still..." Jean said. "Raising a little girl is tough, especially when she's a mutant. We know what it's like, Rémi, and it ain't fun. And try multiplying it by ten thousand."
"Mais, she's not..." (But,)
"Then how do you explain the powerful beam she created?" Jean asked.
Rémi's expression sobered. "'Ow do you know dat," he half asked, half stated.
"I saw through your eyes, Rémi. We have been searching for you for a long time, Gambit. But you lead us straight to you, when you were attacked."
Rémi sat back, deep in thought.
"You're gonna take 'er away from me, aren't you?"
"She needs to learn control, Rémi. She needs a proper education. But, you don't have to leave her, Gambit," Professor Xavier said calmly.
"Elle sait beaucoup des choses! Elle sait anglais couramment, et elle aime beaucoup lire! Et elle ne peux pas vivre si elle ne poudrait pas danser, ou chanter, ou--"
"GAMBIT FERME LA BOUCHE!" (GAMBIT SHUT YOUR MOUTH!)
Everyone turned to stare at Ororo in shock. The peaceful African was usually quiet, and almost never yelled. She looked really upset.
"Rémi, talk *in English,* or not at all. You're going to be here for a while, with that wound, and we need to understand you," she said through gritted teeth.
Rémi sat up straight and looked at Ororo coldly. She stared back, but with a sad expression. Rémi then smiled.
"Aww, I could never stay mad at you for long, chère..."
That was it. The waterworks burst on, and Ororo ran from the room, hands hiding the tears. The others stared after, confused.
"I should talk to 'er, poor petite," Rémi said.
"You shouldn't strain yourself," Jean said absentmindedly. "I'll go. Be glad classes aren't in session for a couple of days, or else she and the prof wouldn't have been able to see you. Oh, and Scott said he'd be down soon, he had some things to take care of first. Well, I'm off. Take your medicine!"
Jean left the room, and Rémi looked at the Professor, who hadn't said much.
"'Ow come you so quiet, Prof?"
"Me? Oh, just thinking, Rémi," the Prof said.
A few minutes passed of awkward silence. Logan stretched his arms.
"Well, I'm off. See ya later, French Fry."
"Au revoir, tu morceau de merde."
Logan looked over his shoulder at Rémi, who grinned, almost laughed to himself.
"I don't like this, don't like it one bit," he muttered to himself. "Note to self: take French lessons," he said as he searched for Scott's keys to his motorcycle.
"J'aime mon travaille," Rémi smirked.
"Prof?"
"Yes, Rémi."
"You wouldn't take Rémi's chère away from 'im... You wouldn't do dat to Rémi, right?"
"I would, if it's in the best interest of the youth. Which, in this case, may be true."
"But... why? Why is dis a case like dis?"
"You may think that she's been happy until now, but, think about this deeply, Rémi. How many times will a night like the other night occur? What if you *do* die? Where will she go? What if you accidentally hurt her? What if *she* gets killed? You must think of scenerios where the worst might happen."
"... You're definitely not an optomist when it comes to me, Prof."
"It may seem that way, yes. I'm sorry."
"It's alright, Rémi gettin' used to it."
Rémi grinned.
"So, when can Rémi see 'is petite?"
Marie tiptoed through the hallway as fast as she could. Soon she came to an elevator. Confused, she stepped into it.
WOOSH! The doors closed, and Marie stood, frightened, as it made it's way to the first floor.
WOOSH! The doors opened. Marie poked her head out, and upon seeing that the coast was clear, stepped out. She barely heard the elevator close behind her and start going down again.
Marie looked around in awe. She was in perhaps the most beautiful room she had ever seen. Light streamed through the window, lighting the stunning woodwork. She felt like she was in a palace.
Marie then noticed a door. She went over to it, but just as her hand reached out, a loud bell rang throughout the building. Marie twisted around with surprise, and heard loud voices coming through the halls. Fearful that she might be caught, she turned the doorknob and stepped through, quickly closing the giant door behind her.
Then she froze to death.
Marie couldn't stop shivering. It was so cold! Her feet were freezing! Why, oh why was it so cold out here?
Soon the bitter cold wasn't the only thing on her mind. She stared in shock at the landscape spread out before her.
For once in her life, she saw trees without leaves. They were covered in white, heavy blankets, or so she thought. The grass was replaced by the same blanket as well. Only, it was cold! It froze her feet. And it was wet. It came apart if she grabbed some of it. It wasn't a very good blanket!
Then, Marie remembered something. A page, from a book, with a picture like this...
Niège. This stuff was niège.
Snow.
Marie giggled, high on the excitement and proud of her accomplishment, but the wind chill cut her short.
Plus the fact that she saw someone out of the corner of her eye.
Marie whirled around to face a girl about her age. She was wearing a long coat, boots, and leather gloves. Marie stared at her hair, which was brown, except for two white streaks that were her bangs.
"Hey, you alright?" the girl said in a Southern accent. Marie just continued to stare at her, a loss for words.
"You're new here, aren't ya?" The girl continued. "What's your name?"
Marie hesitated for a moment.
"Marie."
The girl smiled. "Really? That's mah name too. Well, it used to be, before I told everyone that mah name was Rogue. I like either one, but since... well, mah new life began, I use Rogue more and more."
Rogue stopped to look at Marie's outfit.
"Somethin' tells me, you weren't prepared to go outside so soon. Oh, and you're barefoot too! What are you doing out here in the cold dressed like that? Anyway, we all have to go inside all the same. Lunchtime. You hungry?"
Marie stared blankly.
"Well, ya must be. I am! The others usually sneak into the kitchen to get snacks or whatever, but I'm really not very hungry when they go. Come on, I'll introduce you!"
And before Marie had figured out what was going on, Rogue had grabbed Marie's hand and brought her inside.
"Ororo? Ororo, what's wrong?" Jean asked her friend in an empty classroom.
Ororo turned to face her friend. By now the tears had gone, but her eyes were still red. Outside, near the horizon, storm clouds rumbled their way across the sky.
"Ororo, you need to calm down... Come on, take a deep breath... that's it. Now, tell me, slowly, what just happened."
Eventually the menacing clouds faded away as Storm spoke.
"I'm truly sorry, Jean... Really, I am. But I just couldn't take it in there. First, we find him, sprawled out in the street like that... I thought he was dead. And then the wound... Jean, that little girl is his *daughter*. Doesn't that seem... well, wrong to you? I know he loves her, he must, and she must love him too... But why, oh why couldn't he have come home sooner?"
"You mean, why couldn't that girl have been you, years ago?"
Ororo nodded. "I was his little sister. Not his little girl."
"At least you have that close of a relationship with him. Most of us don't even know what his favorite season is."
"Winter turning into Spring, mostly because of Mardi Gras."
Jean smiled. "See!"
Ororo took a deep breath. "If Marie stays, Jean... and, something happens to.. . Well, I will claim full responsibility for my... my niece. Yes," she said, as if Jean wasn't there, "yes, I will do that exactly!"
"Shouldn't you talk to Rémi first?"
"Don't worry about that," Ororo said, more to herself than to Jean.
"Well, if that's your decision."
Ororo looked at Jean and sighed.
"But still, Jean... This feeling inside? It just won't go away..."
Marie and Rogue didn't speak much on the way to the cafeteria. Marie noticed, though, that Rogue didn't let go of her hand until they were standing in front of a large group of people sitting at a rectangular table.
Marie suddenly felt that she was very lonely. The room was very big, and very loud. There must have been thousands of strange faces there, and they all made her very nervous.
"Marie, this is Kitty Pryde, Jubilation Lee, or Jubilee, and this is Bobby Drake. Guys, this is Marie..."
Marie stared at the people before her. Kitty was a nice-looking girl, with short brown hair and nice eyes. She waved. Jubilee had almond eyes and black hair, and she smiled and flipped her hair across her shoulder, showing off her big hoop earrings and yellow jacket. Bobby... looked like he didn't have much of a future. She didn't know what it was about him, but Marie was... agitated by it.
"Marie? Hello, you okay?"
Marie snapped her head up and looked at Rogue.
"Hey, just askin' what your last name was."
"Marie!"
Marie turned around to see two older women walking towards her. One had long brownish/reddish hair, and the other had white hair, but dark skin. Both looked at each other, eyes wide, then looked at Marie and slowly smiled.
Marie ran for her life.
"Arettez, Marie!"
"Marie, stop!"
Back in the cafeteria, Rogue and her friends stared at the strange sight of their history teacher and their doctor running after a new student who had said only one word so far, and to one person.
As if there was anything else to do besides run after them?
Marie saw up ahead that the hallway diverged into two. She looked behind her and saw the strangers far behind. Marie wasn't in too grand of a shape, but she was a fast runner.
She got it from her father.
Quick! Which way, right or left? Marie peered around the corner and found a dead end. She immediately ran the other way...
... and crashed into Professor Charles Xavier, Principal of The Xavier School for Gifted Youngsters.
Marie crashed into the floor. Xavier crashed into the wall.
The wall crashed into Wolverine.
Marie right away, as if instinct, curled herself up in a ball and began to whimper.
The Professor looked around at first, dazed, then focused all of his attention on the poor child in front of him, weeping on the floor.
Wolverine roared.
"Logan! Stop it!" Ororo glared. Jean crossed her arms. Soon behind them, out of breath, were Rogue, Kitty, Jubilee, and Bobby.
"Hey, party time! Whose up for Pin The Frown On The Angry Mutant?" Bobby grinned. He earned his glares.
Marie looked up at the word "mutant." She stared at the old man in front of her, in the wheelchair, tears coursing down her cheeks.
"S'il vous plaït, monsieur... ne me tuez pas... Je juste veux mon Papa Rémi!"
Ororo walked up to Marie and helped her up.
"Don't worry, dear... We won't hurt you... Nous ne... vous faisons mal? I think that's how it goes... See, it's alright! That's a girl..."
Ororo smiled as Marie relaxed a little, even showed the hints of a smile. Then, much to the surprise of everyone, she actually giggled.
"Votre français est terrible! Et votre accent... Oh! Je suis désolée! Et pardonez-moi... Est-ce que vous savez où mon Papa Rémi est? Je doit le voir, et peut-être vous pouvez faire le connaissance avec il... Vous devriez vraimment l'aimer!"
"What'd she say, Ms. Monroe?" Kitty asked.
Ororo looked at Kitty, a hopeless look on her face.
"I'm not quite sure, but I think she said my French was terrible."
The group laughed.
"And then..." Ororo sighed. "she said something about her father." She looked at Jean, Professor Xavier, and Logan.
"Well, duh. Come on, I even know that!"
Jubilee rolled her eyes. "Well then, smarty pants, what did she say?"
"She mentioned that her Papa's name was Rémi!"
The group groaned.
"I think that you four," the Prof mentioned at Rogue, Kitty, Jubilee, and Bobby, "should go back to lunch. You'll see Marie soon."
"But Professor!"
"Yeah! We want to stay and support our new friend!"
"I ain't movin'. I'm sorry, Professor, but you can't make me."
"Anybody got change for a five?"
Jubilee winced and smacked Bobby in the head.
"Ow! What was that for?"
"For being such a moronic idiot." Jubilee then noticed the grown-ups scowls (except for Logan, who scowled pretty much most of the time, so it wasn't new). She grinned.
"Hey, somebody's got to keep this immature brat in line."
"True... Hey, wait a minute!"
"Aww, Drake, shut your hole for once."
Everyone turned to see a young man standing behind Rogue, with platinum blond hair, and dazzling blue eyes. He smiled his trademark smile at Marie and winked.
"If you don't mind, adults and students alike, I believe I could provide a solution for your problem."
"How long have you been standing there, Lykeios?" Jean asked.
Lucky shrugged. "Enough. And, to let you know, she said that she wants to see her Papa Rémi, and that you, Ms. Monroe, should meet him; that you would really love him."
"Ah, I see you know French as well..."
"Show off," Rogue muttered under her breath.
"No! Only craving attention, my dearest Rogue..."
"I ain't your dearest Rogue."
"Alas! 'Tis true, only in my dreams!"
"And mah nightmares."
"Ooh, straight through the heart!"
"You have a heart?"
"Only one that loves you 'till death do us part!"
"Or until one of us leaves the room, which is most often me."
"Anybody got any popcorn? I'll pay a dollar for a Snickers!" Bobby said. This resulted in a few glares and whacks.
"Hey, it's almost better than TV!" He defended.
"Umm, pardonez-moi? Mais, mon Papa Rémi? Peux-je, s'il vous plaït, le voir maintenant?"
"She wants to know if she could see her Papa Rémi now."
"Thank you, Lykeios. Why don't you come with us to her new room? Girls, why don't you come as well? She'll be sharing a room with you," Ororo said.
The girls shrugged, then followed Ororo to their room. Christian grinned as he followed behind them... err, Rogue.
"Back off, Military Brat."
"Ooh, how original."
"Will you two be quiet!"
"Yeah, seriously, your antics were amusing at first, but now..."
"It's old."
"Way old."
"It died."
"And it don't deserve a funeral."
"So let it rest in peace?"
"Please?"
Rogue looked back and forth from Jubilee to Kitty, then pouted.
"Don't tell *me* about how annoying it is!"
"Well, just ignore him, maybe, and he'll go away," Kitty shrugged.
"I'm not dead, people!" Lykeios said.
"Don't I wish you were!"
"Rogue!"
"Ah, Rogue, you know I'm just teasin'!"
Rogue then looked like a ripe tomato, her face was so red. She was about to retort with a witty comeback, when Marie interfered.
"Marie?" Marie said, pronouncing it the way most French people do: "mah-RIE"
Rogue turned around. "Huh? Oh, Marie. What? And mah name is Rogue."
Marie's face turned crimson. "Désolée, mais, nous sommes ici."
"Do you only speak French?"
"She said that we're here. And yes, that would be why she's speaking it! Sheesh..." Lucky rolled his eyes.
Rogue glared, then realized that Marie was correct. The three of them were outside Rogue's room that she shared with Kitty and Rogue.
"Where'd everybody else go?"
"Oh, they're all inside already. Come on!"
Lykeios grabbed Marie's hand and pulled her inside. All at once, she felt as if she were walking on clouds. Wrong? Nothing was wrong! How could anything be wrong? She giggled to herself. How could anyone be so--
"Lykeios Zacharia! Drop it!"
Ashamed, Lucky let go of Marie. Marie looked around, dazed, and confused. What had happened to her dream world?
Suddenly Rogue had taken hold of Lucky's shirt collar.
"If I EVAH see you messin' around with Marie again, I swear..."
"Rogue!" Ororo glared. "Lykeios knows not to use his powers on people... Right?" Her glare was now fixed on the nervous teenager.
Lucky gulped. "Jus' tryin' make her feel better..."
Rogue let go of Lykeios, but still scowled.
"Anyway, Marie, you'll be staying with Rogue, Kitty, and Jubilee. This is your bed, and we'll take you shopping for some new clothes... And when winter break is over, we'll give you your schedule for school... You'll have to meet with the Professor for that..."
Ororo paused to let Lykeios finish translating.
"... et le Professeur étais l'homme avec non cheveux qui vous envoyerais au mûr... Et c'est Mademoiselle Monroe là," Lykeios said, pointing to Ororo, "et l'autre dame étais Mademoiselle Grey. L'autre type là étais Monsieur Logan... N'inquiètes pas au sujet de lui, il ne vous derange pas... au moins, pas beaucoup." (... and the Professor was the guy with no hair who you sent into the wall... And that's Ms Monroe there... and the other lady was Ms Grey. The other guy there was Mr Logan... Don't worry about him, he won't bother you... at least, not very much.)
"Lykeios, I think that's enough for now..." Ororo frowned.
"Ah, just filling her in on a few things. Like who you are, and stuff." Lykeios then turned back to the very sad Marie.
"Je m'appelle Lykeios, mais mes copains m'appellont 'Lucky.' Vous pouvez m'appelez Lucky, si vous aimez. Je serai toujours à votre servis," Lykeios said as he bowed deep with a flourish. (My name is Lykeios, but my friends call me Lucky. You can call me Lucky if you like. I will always be at your service.)
Marie laughed. "Merci beacoup, mais je pense que je serai vous appeler Lykeios. Je ne sais pas pourquoi, mais j'aime appeler les personnes par leur vrai noms seule. Je suis désolée. Et vous me faites heureux, pour un pendant. Merci beaucoup, Lykeios." (Thank you very much, but I think I'll call you Lykeios. I don't know why, but I like to call people by their true names only. I'm sorry. And you made me happy, for a while. Thank you very much, Lykeios.)
Lykeios grinned. "C'est rien, ma chère." (It's nothing, my chère.)
Instantly Marie's face clouded with anger and sadness.
"Je ne suis pas votre chère. Et je ne serai jamais!" (I am not your chère. And I never will be!)
With that Marie stormed out of the room. Everyone glared at Lykeios, who looked back innocently.
"What?"
Rogue sighed, annoyed. "What did you say this time?"
"Well, I gave her info on the place, and she said thanks, basically, and I said that it was nothing, and then she said that she wasn't my chère, nor never will--"
"You didn't call her call her 'chère,' did you?!" Ororo asked.
"Well, yeah..."
"What? What has Cher got to do with this?" Kitty asked.
"No, that kind of Cher, Kitty..." Lucky sighed.
"Well, what are you waiting for? Go after her and apologize!" Ororo said.
"You can't be serious, Ms Monroe," Rogue said, crossing her arms. "Him? Alone with Marie? No way!"
"Rogue. Trusts me, she needs comfort right now. And his mutation. Go, Lucky."
Lucky nodded, grinned at Rogue, then waved at Kitty and Jubilee as he headed out the door.
Once again, Marie felt the cold floor underneath her feet as she ran. She didn't know where she was going as she turned numerous corners. Finally she came to a set of double doors. Without thinking, she stepped through them.
If this place was a palace, then this room must've been the grand ballroom.
Marie looked around the auditorium, eyes wide with wonder. There must've been millions of seats, and the balcony was so high up it made her dizzy just thinking about it.
And the stage...
Marie walked down the aisles and hopped up to the stage, where a grand piano stood, dormant. She approached it with caution, as if any sudden movements might cause it to break.
She sat down on the bench, her hands lightly touching the keys. She accidentally pressed a note, and jolted back when the sound echoed throughout the room.
She smiled, as the familiar tune floated through her mind and into her fingers...
"You looked like a princess the night we met... With your hair pulled up high, I will never forget. I'm drunk right now baby... but I've got to be... to tell you the things that you mean to me. Oh I love you I loved you the first time I saw you, and I always will love you, Marie..."
"Aha! So you *do* know English!"
Marie looked up to see Lykeios leaning on the piano, grinning. Her hands rushed to her sides, and she avoided his gorgeous blue eyes.
"By the way, you have a beautiful voice, Princess."
"Please... go away..."
"How can I do that when there's a damsel in distress right before me?" Lykeios sat down next to Marie and lifted her chin. She immediately got out of his hold.
Lucky looked at her, hurt. "Hey, I promise, no tricks. See?" He took her hand in his own. Marie felt a little shiver run down her spine, but nothing more.
"See? I know how to control my mutation, unlike Rogue."
"You and Rogue are mutants?" Marie asked, her eyes wide. Lucky looked at her, surprised.
"You really don't know where you are, do you?"
Marie shook her head.
Lykeios then explained everything to Marie, about mutants and the Xavier Institute for Gifted Youngsters, and everyone's mutation.
"See, that's why my powers won't work on Rogue. I have to touch her, and the minute I do that, she'll take my powers. That's why I tease her so much. 'Cause I can't make her happy."
"You seem to be causing her grief instead of joy."
"Aw, I know she likes the attention. She just doesn't like to show it." Lucky then looked at Marie and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.
"Do you know that you're the most beautiful person I've ever met?"
Marie blushed.
"You... You're special to me, Princess. Didn't you feel it? When first I saw you... I thought I was lost. I thought, by some miracle, my mutation was happening to me... but that can't happen."
"Lucky."
"Marie... I think I love you..."
"Isn't that a little fast?!" Marie paused, her cheeks already red. Then she felt Lykeios take her other hand with his, and she looked at him. His breathtaking eyes were sparkling, and he had a silly grin on his face.
"Don't worry, I'll go slow if you want. I... really want you to love me, Princess. Say you do. If you do."
"I... I don't know yet..."
"It's alright. I'm not pressuring you or anything. I know you must've been through a mess lately... Do you mind if I call you Princess?"
"Not at all... I was waiting for someone to call me a name from the song. Are you my knight, come to rescue me?"
"More than that, Princess. I'll give you wings, so you and me could fly away..."
"... Lykeios?"
"Yes, my princess?"
"I..." Marie suddenly wrapped her arms around her knight and sort of layed against him. "Please work your magic with me."
"I'm sorry, Princess... but no."
"Why not?" Marie asked, hurt.
"Because you'll fall in love with it, not me." Lykeios kissed the top of Marie's head lovingly. "And I want you to love me for me. Please, my Princess, understand..."
Marie sighed. "Fine then... just don't let me go..."
"Fine with me... Hey, I forgot to ask. What's your mutation?"
"I... I don't know. I was never told."
"Well, you must have noticed it."
"I guess I can do pretty weird things, like what happened that night..." Marie shivered in Lucky's arms. Lykeios wrapped his arms around his princess and sighed.
"I won't ask, Princess."
"Thank you."
"You know, they'll be looking for us..."
"Then let them look. I'm... happy here."
The princess then rested her head on her knight's shoulder, sighed happily, and closed her eyes. She began to sing softly, and her knight hummed along.
"I was waiting for so long, for a miracle to come. Everyone told me to be strong. Hold on, and don't shed a tear... Through the darkness and good times, I knew I'd make it through. And the world thought I had it all, but I was waiting for you. Hush, now, I see a light in the sky. Oh, it's almost blinding me. I can't believe I've been touched by an angel with love... Let the rain come down and wash away my tears. Let it feel my soul and drown my fears. Let it shatter the walls for a new sun. A new day has come... Where there was dark now there's light. Where there was pain now there's joy. Where there was weakness I found my strength, all in the eyes of a boy... Hush, now, I see a light in the sky. Oh, it's almost blinding me. I can't believe I've been touched by an angel with love... Let the rain come down and wash away my tears. Let it feel my soul and drown my fears. Let it shatter the walls for a new sun. A new day has... Let the rain come down and wash away my tears. Let it feel my soul and drown my fears. Let it shatter the walls for a new sun. A new day has come... I can't believe I've been touched by an angel with love... Hush, now, I see a light in your eyes... All in the eyes of a boy... A new day has... Hush, now..."
Yeah anyway Rogue and Logan came early to the Institute in this one... And Logan's back, and is now a teacher in the Danger Room. Because I said so. Rogue and Marie are the same age. Word of caution: I HATE BOBBY WITH MY WHOLE ENTIRE BEING!! So you'll see alot of that. Now I also don't like Shawn Ashmore... I LOVE CHRISTOPHER RALPH! Sorry... I decided I'm not translating the French if no one around Marie can understand it. Especially the long rants. Let's give the beginners a chance to practice, shall we? Sorry! I feel special. On!
A New Day Has Come
"Papa?" Marie called out. It was dark all around her, but she kept on walking. She had to find her Papa, she just had to...
"Papa? Où-es tu? Papa, s'il te plaït, me reviens!" (Where are you? Please, come back to me!)
Marie suddenly came to a door. Without hesitating, she twisted the doorknob and stepped through.
Marie opened her eyes.
She sat up, with a few pains. She looked around and found she was in a white room, lying on a white bed, and a tray table was to her right. There were a few doctor's tools, and a plate with what looked like dinner on it. There was no one else around.
Marie began to grow frightened.
"Papa? Papa!" she sobbed, as every memory came flooding back. She even checked her ears, and sighed as she found her earrings were still there, and not stolen. After a few minutes, which seemed like seconds at the same time, she calmed herself down and focused on the dinner. Since she *was* hungry, and there was no one around to tell her *not* to...
Marie gobbled down the dinner hungrily, drowning her sorrows in food. When she finished, she set the plate down and decided to get up. She winced from the pain, but it was soon forgotten when she realized what she was wearing.
It certainly wasn't her new dress, that was for certain.
A gray hooded sweatshirt was the only thing covering her upper body. Not even a bra. She was relieved to find that she had on underwear, at least. And a pair of gray sweatpants. They didn't even match hues. But her feet were bare.
Good for sneaking around.
Marie searched the room for her belongings, if any, but found none. She slowly inched towards the door, peeked out, and, finding no one, creeped down the hallway.
"Ah, good! You're up!" A soothing voice said.
Rémi groaned and opened his eyes. He saw a bunch of familiar, safe faces peering down at him. He struggled to sit up, but the hands pushed him back down.
"No, no, Rémi, you need to rest," Jean Grey said.
Rémi grinned and did as told. He looked over at Professor Charles Xavier and nodded briefly.
"Prof..." he mumbled.
"Gambit," the Professor nodded back.
"Hello, Rémi," Ororo softly smiled.
"Petite!" Rémi grinned back.
"You got yourself into quite a mess back there," Jean said. "You're lucky we came when we did, you would've bled to death if we hadn't, and where would that little girl be now?"
"Little girl..." Rémi's eyes widened. "Marie! Marie, où-est ma fille? Je veux la voir, je doit la voir! Comment est elle? Elle est d'accord? Marie!" (Marie! Where is my daughter? I want to see her, I must see her! How is she? Is she okay? Marie!)
Rémi struggled to get up, to look for his little girl, and the hands flew up to stop him, but they weren't needed. The pain beat them to it.
Rémi cried out, the pain searing through him. He grimaced, and immediately his hands reached for his side. He collasped back to the bed with a loud slam, but he forced a grin when he saw everyone's concerned faces.
"Rémi, calm down, you're in no shape to start walking yet."
"Yeah, you ain't me, French Fry." In their panic, no one had noticed Logan walk in.
Rémi grinned. "Yeh, two would be too much for de world."
"Ha ha," Logan mocked. "I just came from that little girl's room, she was sound asleep. She's okay, Frenchie, just a little beat up. So don't have a cow."
"Who is that girl, anyway, Rémi?" Ororo asked. She had turned a little pale, but no one seemed to notice except Rémi. He made a mental note to talk to her when he had the chance.
"She's ma petite fille," Rémi said aloud, providing no other explanation.
All eyes turned to Ororo for a translation. She sighed.
"I'm not that good. He went too fast." She stared at Rémi. "Either say it in English or go slower, Rémi."
Rémi acted like he had been shot, like the words had wounded him. Then he grinned.
"Elle... est... ma... petite... fille," he said, dragging the words.
Ororo paled even more. "That's what I thought..."
"What? What did he say," Jean asked her friend concernedly.
"Marie... She's..." Ororo stuttered. "She's his daughter!"
All eyes focused on Rémi, who had his usual smirk on his face.
"Adopted."
Everyone sighed in relief, and the tension in the air lessoned somewhat.
"But still..." Jean said. "Raising a little girl is tough, especially when she's a mutant. We know what it's like, Rémi, and it ain't fun. And try multiplying it by ten thousand."
"Mais, she's not..." (But,)
"Then how do you explain the powerful beam she created?" Jean asked.
Rémi's expression sobered. "'Ow do you know dat," he half asked, half stated.
"I saw through your eyes, Rémi. We have been searching for you for a long time, Gambit. But you lead us straight to you, when you were attacked."
Rémi sat back, deep in thought.
"You're gonna take 'er away from me, aren't you?"
"She needs to learn control, Rémi. She needs a proper education. But, you don't have to leave her, Gambit," Professor Xavier said calmly.
"Elle sait beaucoup des choses! Elle sait anglais couramment, et elle aime beaucoup lire! Et elle ne peux pas vivre si elle ne poudrait pas danser, ou chanter, ou--"
"GAMBIT FERME LA BOUCHE!" (GAMBIT SHUT YOUR MOUTH!)
Everyone turned to stare at Ororo in shock. The peaceful African was usually quiet, and almost never yelled. She looked really upset.
"Rémi, talk *in English,* or not at all. You're going to be here for a while, with that wound, and we need to understand you," she said through gritted teeth.
Rémi sat up straight and looked at Ororo coldly. She stared back, but with a sad expression. Rémi then smiled.
"Aww, I could never stay mad at you for long, chère..."
That was it. The waterworks burst on, and Ororo ran from the room, hands hiding the tears. The others stared after, confused.
"I should talk to 'er, poor petite," Rémi said.
"You shouldn't strain yourself," Jean said absentmindedly. "I'll go. Be glad classes aren't in session for a couple of days, or else she and the prof wouldn't have been able to see you. Oh, and Scott said he'd be down soon, he had some things to take care of first. Well, I'm off. Take your medicine!"
Jean left the room, and Rémi looked at the Professor, who hadn't said much.
"'Ow come you so quiet, Prof?"
"Me? Oh, just thinking, Rémi," the Prof said.
A few minutes passed of awkward silence. Logan stretched his arms.
"Well, I'm off. See ya later, French Fry."
"Au revoir, tu morceau de merde."
Logan looked over his shoulder at Rémi, who grinned, almost laughed to himself.
"I don't like this, don't like it one bit," he muttered to himself. "Note to self: take French lessons," he said as he searched for Scott's keys to his motorcycle.
"J'aime mon travaille," Rémi smirked.
"Prof?"
"Yes, Rémi."
"You wouldn't take Rémi's chère away from 'im... You wouldn't do dat to Rémi, right?"
"I would, if it's in the best interest of the youth. Which, in this case, may be true."
"But... why? Why is dis a case like dis?"
"You may think that she's been happy until now, but, think about this deeply, Rémi. How many times will a night like the other night occur? What if you *do* die? Where will she go? What if you accidentally hurt her? What if *she* gets killed? You must think of scenerios where the worst might happen."
"... You're definitely not an optomist when it comes to me, Prof."
"It may seem that way, yes. I'm sorry."
"It's alright, Rémi gettin' used to it."
Rémi grinned.
"So, when can Rémi see 'is petite?"
Marie tiptoed through the hallway as fast as she could. Soon she came to an elevator. Confused, she stepped into it.
WOOSH! The doors closed, and Marie stood, frightened, as it made it's way to the first floor.
WOOSH! The doors opened. Marie poked her head out, and upon seeing that the coast was clear, stepped out. She barely heard the elevator close behind her and start going down again.
Marie looked around in awe. She was in perhaps the most beautiful room she had ever seen. Light streamed through the window, lighting the stunning woodwork. She felt like she was in a palace.
Marie then noticed a door. She went over to it, but just as her hand reached out, a loud bell rang throughout the building. Marie twisted around with surprise, and heard loud voices coming through the halls. Fearful that she might be caught, she turned the doorknob and stepped through, quickly closing the giant door behind her.
Then she froze to death.
Marie couldn't stop shivering. It was so cold! Her feet were freezing! Why, oh why was it so cold out here?
Soon the bitter cold wasn't the only thing on her mind. She stared in shock at the landscape spread out before her.
For once in her life, she saw trees without leaves. They were covered in white, heavy blankets, or so she thought. The grass was replaced by the same blanket as well. Only, it was cold! It froze her feet. And it was wet. It came apart if she grabbed some of it. It wasn't a very good blanket!
Then, Marie remembered something. A page, from a book, with a picture like this...
Niège. This stuff was niège.
Snow.
Marie giggled, high on the excitement and proud of her accomplishment, but the wind chill cut her short.
Plus the fact that she saw someone out of the corner of her eye.
Marie whirled around to face a girl about her age. She was wearing a long coat, boots, and leather gloves. Marie stared at her hair, which was brown, except for two white streaks that were her bangs.
"Hey, you alright?" the girl said in a Southern accent. Marie just continued to stare at her, a loss for words.
"You're new here, aren't ya?" The girl continued. "What's your name?"
Marie hesitated for a moment.
"Marie."
The girl smiled. "Really? That's mah name too. Well, it used to be, before I told everyone that mah name was Rogue. I like either one, but since... well, mah new life began, I use Rogue more and more."
Rogue stopped to look at Marie's outfit.
"Somethin' tells me, you weren't prepared to go outside so soon. Oh, and you're barefoot too! What are you doing out here in the cold dressed like that? Anyway, we all have to go inside all the same. Lunchtime. You hungry?"
Marie stared blankly.
"Well, ya must be. I am! The others usually sneak into the kitchen to get snacks or whatever, but I'm really not very hungry when they go. Come on, I'll introduce you!"
And before Marie had figured out what was going on, Rogue had grabbed Marie's hand and brought her inside.
"Ororo? Ororo, what's wrong?" Jean asked her friend in an empty classroom.
Ororo turned to face her friend. By now the tears had gone, but her eyes were still red. Outside, near the horizon, storm clouds rumbled their way across the sky.
"Ororo, you need to calm down... Come on, take a deep breath... that's it. Now, tell me, slowly, what just happened."
Eventually the menacing clouds faded away as Storm spoke.
"I'm truly sorry, Jean... Really, I am. But I just couldn't take it in there. First, we find him, sprawled out in the street like that... I thought he was dead. And then the wound... Jean, that little girl is his *daughter*. Doesn't that seem... well, wrong to you? I know he loves her, he must, and she must love him too... But why, oh why couldn't he have come home sooner?"
"You mean, why couldn't that girl have been you, years ago?"
Ororo nodded. "I was his little sister. Not his little girl."
"At least you have that close of a relationship with him. Most of us don't even know what his favorite season is."
"Winter turning into Spring, mostly because of Mardi Gras."
Jean smiled. "See!"
Ororo took a deep breath. "If Marie stays, Jean... and, something happens to.. . Well, I will claim full responsibility for my... my niece. Yes," she said, as if Jean wasn't there, "yes, I will do that exactly!"
"Shouldn't you talk to Rémi first?"
"Don't worry about that," Ororo said, more to herself than to Jean.
"Well, if that's your decision."
Ororo looked at Jean and sighed.
"But still, Jean... This feeling inside? It just won't go away..."
Marie and Rogue didn't speak much on the way to the cafeteria. Marie noticed, though, that Rogue didn't let go of her hand until they were standing in front of a large group of people sitting at a rectangular table.
Marie suddenly felt that she was very lonely. The room was very big, and very loud. There must have been thousands of strange faces there, and they all made her very nervous.
"Marie, this is Kitty Pryde, Jubilation Lee, or Jubilee, and this is Bobby Drake. Guys, this is Marie..."
Marie stared at the people before her. Kitty was a nice-looking girl, with short brown hair and nice eyes. She waved. Jubilee had almond eyes and black hair, and she smiled and flipped her hair across her shoulder, showing off her big hoop earrings and yellow jacket. Bobby... looked like he didn't have much of a future. She didn't know what it was about him, but Marie was... agitated by it.
"Marie? Hello, you okay?"
Marie snapped her head up and looked at Rogue.
"Hey, just askin' what your last name was."
"Marie!"
Marie turned around to see two older women walking towards her. One had long brownish/reddish hair, and the other had white hair, but dark skin. Both looked at each other, eyes wide, then looked at Marie and slowly smiled.
Marie ran for her life.
"Arettez, Marie!"
"Marie, stop!"
Back in the cafeteria, Rogue and her friends stared at the strange sight of their history teacher and their doctor running after a new student who had said only one word so far, and to one person.
As if there was anything else to do besides run after them?
Marie saw up ahead that the hallway diverged into two. She looked behind her and saw the strangers far behind. Marie wasn't in too grand of a shape, but she was a fast runner.
She got it from her father.
Quick! Which way, right or left? Marie peered around the corner and found a dead end. She immediately ran the other way...
... and crashed into Professor Charles Xavier, Principal of The Xavier School for Gifted Youngsters.
Marie crashed into the floor. Xavier crashed into the wall.
The wall crashed into Wolverine.
Marie right away, as if instinct, curled herself up in a ball and began to whimper.
The Professor looked around at first, dazed, then focused all of his attention on the poor child in front of him, weeping on the floor.
Wolverine roared.
"Logan! Stop it!" Ororo glared. Jean crossed her arms. Soon behind them, out of breath, were Rogue, Kitty, Jubilee, and Bobby.
"Hey, party time! Whose up for Pin The Frown On The Angry Mutant?" Bobby grinned. He earned his glares.
Marie looked up at the word "mutant." She stared at the old man in front of her, in the wheelchair, tears coursing down her cheeks.
"S'il vous plaït, monsieur... ne me tuez pas... Je juste veux mon Papa Rémi!"
Ororo walked up to Marie and helped her up.
"Don't worry, dear... We won't hurt you... Nous ne... vous faisons mal? I think that's how it goes... See, it's alright! That's a girl..."
Ororo smiled as Marie relaxed a little, even showed the hints of a smile. Then, much to the surprise of everyone, she actually giggled.
"Votre français est terrible! Et votre accent... Oh! Je suis désolée! Et pardonez-moi... Est-ce que vous savez où mon Papa Rémi est? Je doit le voir, et peut-être vous pouvez faire le connaissance avec il... Vous devriez vraimment l'aimer!"
"What'd she say, Ms. Monroe?" Kitty asked.
Ororo looked at Kitty, a hopeless look on her face.
"I'm not quite sure, but I think she said my French was terrible."
The group laughed.
"And then..." Ororo sighed. "she said something about her father." She looked at Jean, Professor Xavier, and Logan.
"Well, duh. Come on, I even know that!"
Jubilee rolled her eyes. "Well then, smarty pants, what did she say?"
"She mentioned that her Papa's name was Rémi!"
The group groaned.
"I think that you four," the Prof mentioned at Rogue, Kitty, Jubilee, and Bobby, "should go back to lunch. You'll see Marie soon."
"But Professor!"
"Yeah! We want to stay and support our new friend!"
"I ain't movin'. I'm sorry, Professor, but you can't make me."
"Anybody got change for a five?"
Jubilee winced and smacked Bobby in the head.
"Ow! What was that for?"
"For being such a moronic idiot." Jubilee then noticed the grown-ups scowls (except for Logan, who scowled pretty much most of the time, so it wasn't new). She grinned.
"Hey, somebody's got to keep this immature brat in line."
"True... Hey, wait a minute!"
"Aww, Drake, shut your hole for once."
Everyone turned to see a young man standing behind Rogue, with platinum blond hair, and dazzling blue eyes. He smiled his trademark smile at Marie and winked.
"If you don't mind, adults and students alike, I believe I could provide a solution for your problem."
"How long have you been standing there, Lykeios?" Jean asked.
Lucky shrugged. "Enough. And, to let you know, she said that she wants to see her Papa Rémi, and that you, Ms. Monroe, should meet him; that you would really love him."
"Ah, I see you know French as well..."
"Show off," Rogue muttered under her breath.
"No! Only craving attention, my dearest Rogue..."
"I ain't your dearest Rogue."
"Alas! 'Tis true, only in my dreams!"
"And mah nightmares."
"Ooh, straight through the heart!"
"You have a heart?"
"Only one that loves you 'till death do us part!"
"Or until one of us leaves the room, which is most often me."
"Anybody got any popcorn? I'll pay a dollar for a Snickers!" Bobby said. This resulted in a few glares and whacks.
"Hey, it's almost better than TV!" He defended.
"Umm, pardonez-moi? Mais, mon Papa Rémi? Peux-je, s'il vous plaït, le voir maintenant?"
"She wants to know if she could see her Papa Rémi now."
"Thank you, Lykeios. Why don't you come with us to her new room? Girls, why don't you come as well? She'll be sharing a room with you," Ororo said.
The girls shrugged, then followed Ororo to their room. Christian grinned as he followed behind them... err, Rogue.
"Back off, Military Brat."
"Ooh, how original."
"Will you two be quiet!"
"Yeah, seriously, your antics were amusing at first, but now..."
"It's old."
"Way old."
"It died."
"And it don't deserve a funeral."
"So let it rest in peace?"
"Please?"
Rogue looked back and forth from Jubilee to Kitty, then pouted.
"Don't tell *me* about how annoying it is!"
"Well, just ignore him, maybe, and he'll go away," Kitty shrugged.
"I'm not dead, people!" Lykeios said.
"Don't I wish you were!"
"Rogue!"
"Ah, Rogue, you know I'm just teasin'!"
Rogue then looked like a ripe tomato, her face was so red. She was about to retort with a witty comeback, when Marie interfered.
"Marie?" Marie said, pronouncing it the way most French people do: "mah-RIE"
Rogue turned around. "Huh? Oh, Marie. What? And mah name is Rogue."
Marie's face turned crimson. "Désolée, mais, nous sommes ici."
"Do you only speak French?"
"She said that we're here. And yes, that would be why she's speaking it! Sheesh..." Lucky rolled his eyes.
Rogue glared, then realized that Marie was correct. The three of them were outside Rogue's room that she shared with Kitty and Rogue.
"Where'd everybody else go?"
"Oh, they're all inside already. Come on!"
Lykeios grabbed Marie's hand and pulled her inside. All at once, she felt as if she were walking on clouds. Wrong? Nothing was wrong! How could anything be wrong? She giggled to herself. How could anyone be so--
"Lykeios Zacharia! Drop it!"
Ashamed, Lucky let go of Marie. Marie looked around, dazed, and confused. What had happened to her dream world?
Suddenly Rogue had taken hold of Lucky's shirt collar.
"If I EVAH see you messin' around with Marie again, I swear..."
"Rogue!" Ororo glared. "Lykeios knows not to use his powers on people... Right?" Her glare was now fixed on the nervous teenager.
Lucky gulped. "Jus' tryin' make her feel better..."
Rogue let go of Lykeios, but still scowled.
"Anyway, Marie, you'll be staying with Rogue, Kitty, and Jubilee. This is your bed, and we'll take you shopping for some new clothes... And when winter break is over, we'll give you your schedule for school... You'll have to meet with the Professor for that..."
Ororo paused to let Lykeios finish translating.
"... et le Professeur étais l'homme avec non cheveux qui vous envoyerais au mûr... Et c'est Mademoiselle Monroe là," Lykeios said, pointing to Ororo, "et l'autre dame étais Mademoiselle Grey. L'autre type là étais Monsieur Logan... N'inquiètes pas au sujet de lui, il ne vous derange pas... au moins, pas beaucoup." (... and the Professor was the guy with no hair who you sent into the wall... And that's Ms Monroe there... and the other lady was Ms Grey. The other guy there was Mr Logan... Don't worry about him, he won't bother you... at least, not very much.)
"Lykeios, I think that's enough for now..." Ororo frowned.
"Ah, just filling her in on a few things. Like who you are, and stuff." Lykeios then turned back to the very sad Marie.
"Je m'appelle Lykeios, mais mes copains m'appellont 'Lucky.' Vous pouvez m'appelez Lucky, si vous aimez. Je serai toujours à votre servis," Lykeios said as he bowed deep with a flourish. (My name is Lykeios, but my friends call me Lucky. You can call me Lucky if you like. I will always be at your service.)
Marie laughed. "Merci beacoup, mais je pense que je serai vous appeler Lykeios. Je ne sais pas pourquoi, mais j'aime appeler les personnes par leur vrai noms seule. Je suis désolée. Et vous me faites heureux, pour un pendant. Merci beaucoup, Lykeios." (Thank you very much, but I think I'll call you Lykeios. I don't know why, but I like to call people by their true names only. I'm sorry. And you made me happy, for a while. Thank you very much, Lykeios.)
Lykeios grinned. "C'est rien, ma chère." (It's nothing, my chère.)
Instantly Marie's face clouded with anger and sadness.
"Je ne suis pas votre chère. Et je ne serai jamais!" (I am not your chère. And I never will be!)
With that Marie stormed out of the room. Everyone glared at Lykeios, who looked back innocently.
"What?"
Rogue sighed, annoyed. "What did you say this time?"
"Well, I gave her info on the place, and she said thanks, basically, and I said that it was nothing, and then she said that she wasn't my chère, nor never will--"
"You didn't call her call her 'chère,' did you?!" Ororo asked.
"Well, yeah..."
"What? What has Cher got to do with this?" Kitty asked.
"No, that kind of Cher, Kitty..." Lucky sighed.
"Well, what are you waiting for? Go after her and apologize!" Ororo said.
"You can't be serious, Ms Monroe," Rogue said, crossing her arms. "Him? Alone with Marie? No way!"
"Rogue. Trusts me, she needs comfort right now. And his mutation. Go, Lucky."
Lucky nodded, grinned at Rogue, then waved at Kitty and Jubilee as he headed out the door.
Once again, Marie felt the cold floor underneath her feet as she ran. She didn't know where she was going as she turned numerous corners. Finally she came to a set of double doors. Without thinking, she stepped through them.
If this place was a palace, then this room must've been the grand ballroom.
Marie looked around the auditorium, eyes wide with wonder. There must've been millions of seats, and the balcony was so high up it made her dizzy just thinking about it.
And the stage...
Marie walked down the aisles and hopped up to the stage, where a grand piano stood, dormant. She approached it with caution, as if any sudden movements might cause it to break.
She sat down on the bench, her hands lightly touching the keys. She accidentally pressed a note, and jolted back when the sound echoed throughout the room.
She smiled, as the familiar tune floated through her mind and into her fingers...
"You looked like a princess the night we met... With your hair pulled up high, I will never forget. I'm drunk right now baby... but I've got to be... to tell you the things that you mean to me. Oh I love you I loved you the first time I saw you, and I always will love you, Marie..."
"Aha! So you *do* know English!"
Marie looked up to see Lykeios leaning on the piano, grinning. Her hands rushed to her sides, and she avoided his gorgeous blue eyes.
"By the way, you have a beautiful voice, Princess."
"Please... go away..."
"How can I do that when there's a damsel in distress right before me?" Lykeios sat down next to Marie and lifted her chin. She immediately got out of his hold.
Lucky looked at her, hurt. "Hey, I promise, no tricks. See?" He took her hand in his own. Marie felt a little shiver run down her spine, but nothing more.
"See? I know how to control my mutation, unlike Rogue."
"You and Rogue are mutants?" Marie asked, her eyes wide. Lucky looked at her, surprised.
"You really don't know where you are, do you?"
Marie shook her head.
Lykeios then explained everything to Marie, about mutants and the Xavier Institute for Gifted Youngsters, and everyone's mutation.
"See, that's why my powers won't work on Rogue. I have to touch her, and the minute I do that, she'll take my powers. That's why I tease her so much. 'Cause I can't make her happy."
"You seem to be causing her grief instead of joy."
"Aw, I know she likes the attention. She just doesn't like to show it." Lucky then looked at Marie and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.
"Do you know that you're the most beautiful person I've ever met?"
Marie blushed.
"You... You're special to me, Princess. Didn't you feel it? When first I saw you... I thought I was lost. I thought, by some miracle, my mutation was happening to me... but that can't happen."
"Lucky."
"Marie... I think I love you..."
"Isn't that a little fast?!" Marie paused, her cheeks already red. Then she felt Lykeios take her other hand with his, and she looked at him. His breathtaking eyes were sparkling, and he had a silly grin on his face.
"Don't worry, I'll go slow if you want. I... really want you to love me, Princess. Say you do. If you do."
"I... I don't know yet..."
"It's alright. I'm not pressuring you or anything. I know you must've been through a mess lately... Do you mind if I call you Princess?"
"Not at all... I was waiting for someone to call me a name from the song. Are you my knight, come to rescue me?"
"More than that, Princess. I'll give you wings, so you and me could fly away..."
"... Lykeios?"
"Yes, my princess?"
"I..." Marie suddenly wrapped her arms around her knight and sort of layed against him. "Please work your magic with me."
"I'm sorry, Princess... but no."
"Why not?" Marie asked, hurt.
"Because you'll fall in love with it, not me." Lykeios kissed the top of Marie's head lovingly. "And I want you to love me for me. Please, my Princess, understand..."
Marie sighed. "Fine then... just don't let me go..."
"Fine with me... Hey, I forgot to ask. What's your mutation?"
"I... I don't know. I was never told."
"Well, you must have noticed it."
"I guess I can do pretty weird things, like what happened that night..." Marie shivered in Lucky's arms. Lykeios wrapped his arms around his princess and sighed.
"I won't ask, Princess."
"Thank you."
"You know, they'll be looking for us..."
"Then let them look. I'm... happy here."
The princess then rested her head on her knight's shoulder, sighed happily, and closed her eyes. She began to sing softly, and her knight hummed along.
"I was waiting for so long, for a miracle to come. Everyone told me to be strong. Hold on, and don't shed a tear... Through the darkness and good times, I knew I'd make it through. And the world thought I had it all, but I was waiting for you. Hush, now, I see a light in the sky. Oh, it's almost blinding me. I can't believe I've been touched by an angel with love... Let the rain come down and wash away my tears. Let it feel my soul and drown my fears. Let it shatter the walls for a new sun. A new day has come... Where there was dark now there's light. Where there was pain now there's joy. Where there was weakness I found my strength, all in the eyes of a boy... Hush, now, I see a light in the sky. Oh, it's almost blinding me. I can't believe I've been touched by an angel with love... Let the rain come down and wash away my tears. Let it feel my soul and drown my fears. Let it shatter the walls for a new sun. A new day has... Let the rain come down and wash away my tears. Let it feel my soul and drown my fears. Let it shatter the walls for a new sun. A new day has come... I can't believe I've been touched by an angel with love... Hush, now, I see a light in your eyes... All in the eyes of a boy... A new day has... Hush, now..."