* * *
Henri had shaved his head since I'd been gone. On a normal twenty year-old de look would have been edgy and strange, somet'ing like Billy Corgan. Since I knew Henri, knew what he was like, reminded me more of someone's bald nonc (uncle). Had t' bite my tongue t' keep from telling him dat of course.
I liked Mercy right away. She was a beautiful girl wit' heavy strawberry blonde hair an' blue eyes dat always seemed t' be eager t' see new t'ings. Henri assured me dat she was a fine t'ief in her own right.
"Fact is, I'm t'inking of sponsoring her for Guild membership," he told me. We were sitting in de living room after dinner. Jean-Luc was off on some mysterious business, probably related t' de Antiquary. I shuddered t' t'ink of de man and so it was like Henri knew what I was t'inkin' an' changed de subject.
"Ah shure do appreciate it, darlin'," Mercy said putting on an exaggerated southern accent. She leapt nimbly over de back of de couch and settled herself into Henri's side. Jean-Luc was letting her stay at de house, in a separate room of course. Vraisemblablement (most likely) I'd hear de quiet footsteps along de floorboards dat night. Henri was de dutiful son, but he was no saint.
"Henri's de best," I told her in all honesty. "He sponsored me. What's de expression? Tough but fair."
"Not too tough, I hope," Mercy laughed. She poked Henri gently in de ribs and I felt a stab o' regret dat a certain pair of gray eyes were so far away from me right den. Mercy must have been studying my face carefully, because den she asked, "What's dis Emil tells me about a girl, Remy?"
Henri unwound Mercy's hair from his fingers and sat up straighter. "Never heard about dis."
Dey were both leaning forward, looking at me, and coo-yon (foolish) man dat I am, I could feel my face getting hot.
"Never seen him like dis," Henri told Mercy. "Y'd t'ink he never had a girlfriend before. What's her name, Remy?"
"Rogue."
Mercy and Henri looked at each other. "Biker or rock star?" Henri asked.
"Professional wrestler?" Mercy suggested.
I rolled my eyes and sighed. "I don't see why I bother wit' you." Looked sharply at Mercy. "Either of you." Dey knew I wasn't being serious.
Dey laughed. "What's she like?" Mercy asked.
It's such a deceptively simple question, but de thoughts o' Rogue filled my head too fast t' sort. What she was like was a smell and a texture, a reluctant smile half-seen, de hard bite of a new apple.
All I could do was shrug an' say, "She's not like anyone else."
In Jean-Luc's house dere's never much time for regret. Etienne came racing into de room on his rollerblades. Emil was hot on his heels, yelling for him t' stop, laughing at de same time. Etienne jumped onto de coffee table, scattering magazines everywhere. Reflexively, I reached out and grabbed Etienne around de waist, pulling him onto de couch wit' me.
"Why you so gumbo ya-ya (loud and boisterous)?" I asked him.
Emil skidded to a stop an' dropped t' de other side of me, breathing hard. "'m gettin' too old for dis," he panted.
I looked at him out of de corner of my eye. "Get no arguments from me, podna (dude)."
Emil smacked me lightly across de back of my head. "Enculé (bastard)," he said wit'out malice. "Etienne's just restless is all. Kids!"
"I'm no kid!" Etienne put in indignantly.
"You'll always be a peeshwank (runt) t' me." Emil grinned, showing all his teeth.
"Dat's right, tomorrow's de big day," Mercy cut in, wit' a warning look t' Emil. "You know what de're going t' ask you t' do?"
Etienne shook his head. His blonde hair was longish and it fell into his eyes. Distracted, he brushed it away. "Dey never tell you 'till right before," he explained seriously. Mercy looked like she wanted t' laugh at his grave face, but like Mattie she knew better den t' find humor in someone else's passion.
"You on duty tonight, Emil?" she asked him.
Emil rubbed de back of his neck. "Yeah. Makes me kinda crazy t' sit here."
"Y' got t' punch de time clock just like de rest of us," Henri cut in.
"I know dat, Henri, but dat doesn't mean I have t' like it."
It was den dat it happened. Everyt'ing seemed t' get real clear. I could see all of dem sitting dere, talking 'bout not'ing. De words surrounded me until I felt warm. Was filled wit' de relief of being home. Dis was de place where I could be understood. Sitting dere wit' all de family, any problems I'd had or was likely t' have seemed insubstantial as a dream.
But in a dream, de living room window doesn't shatter. No explosives go off in de living room. De living room wall doesn't collapse in a roar.
* * *
"Don't know what Julien should mean ta me," Ah snapped.
"Julien Boudreaux," he said, with that same awful sadness.
That stopped me cold, took all the sting outta my anger. Ah lowered him ta the ground, raised my hand ta my mouth, as if Ah could prevent what Ah was about ta say. "You're her brother?" The words came out in a strangled whisper.
It was his turn ta raise his hands. He covered his eyes an' pulled his fingers through his hair until it stood out in wild tufts. "It's a foutre (fuck up). It isn't right. I know dat." He fell more than sat on the ground an' looked up at me as if Ah might offer him some kinda forgiveness.
"Are ya shittin' me, Julien Boudreaux? Are ya tellin' the truth 'bout Remy an' your sister?" Ah half-hated myself for askin', but Ah just had ta know. Ah had ta know if Ah should crush all his gifts into a trillion pieces.
"Non," Julien said. "Wish dat I was. Last night, heard Marius--dat's my father--talking on de phone. He's made some kind of deal wit' someone 'bout de future o' de Guilds. If Remy and Bella get married, den every t'ief an' assassin in Nawlins come under dere control. It's de security of my father's old age."
That stopped me. Ah felt the air go outta me. Everythin' Julien said only made me realize more an' more how little Ah really knew 'bout Remy an' his family. Guilds? He might as well have been royalty. A strange kind o' royalty, but royalty nonetheless. Ah felt like the ground had been knocked out from under my feet, plus my head was still swimmin' a little from before. Ah tried ta will the dizziness away. Ah didn't want ta think 'bout what it might mean.
Ah looked at Julien hard, unsure o' what ta do. "Whaddya want from me?" My voice was risin' again. Ah knew it was unfair o' me ta take out all my frustrations on Julien. Obviously, the boy had his own problems, an' big ones at that, but it didn't mean Ah could stop myself.
He looked at me just like Ah'd grown another head. "I want you t' come back wit' me. Talk some sense into dem."
Ah narrowed my eyes. "An' Ah'm sure that serves your interests more than mine. Ah'm supposed ta do all the dirty work so you can have your sister all ta yourself?" Ah couldn't repress a visible shudder. "That's just a little too weird for me, thanks."
"Guess y' don't love him, den."
That's when Ah got real mad. "Who said anythin' 'bout love? Ah've barely had time ta myself ta think 'bout love! Ah don't even think ya love your sister, Ah think you just don't want ta share her because you're selfish." His hand shot out, but Ah grabbed his wrist, squeezing it just enough ta make a line appear between his eyebrows. "Ah wouldn't fuck with me if Ah were you."
For a moment we were both quiet, facin' each other down, breathin' heavy. "You don't know me..." he began.
"That's right. Ah don't. An' you don't know me. So we're even."
He looked uncertain. "So what you planning t' do?"
Ah sighed. My thinkin' had been so confused lately with the hotels an' the gifts an' Jean wearin' herself out with lookin' for the professor an' the rest o' us wearin' ourselves out with worry. Ah picked up the bottle o' perfume. It was deep ruby in the dim light. Ah turned it, watchin' as sparks caught along the surface. It was a bottle o' fire an' Ah had a sinkin' feelin' that Ah didn't really know what Ah was in for. Sometimes Ah felt like if Ah just had a day ta think everythin' over it'd all come clear an' the weight in my chest would go away. My vision crossed an' Ah saw double for a second. Ah blinked it away. "Put your arms around my neck. Whatever ya do, don't touch my skin, it's a little crowded inside my head right now." Ah gave him a rueful smile. "Let's see how fast we get there."
Julien did exactly what Ah told him ta do and that made me happy. Outside, headlights flashed through the curtain from the parking lot. Probably Scott an' the rest o' them. Ah felt a pang ta be leavin' 'em, but Ah didn't see how Ah could help. Ah took a deep breath, opened the door an' kicked off into the sky.
Thought Ah heard someone shout my name (Kitty?) but Ah didn't look back ta see. Felt good ta have the wind whippin' in my face. Tears ran down my face an' over my neck. Ah pushed myself faster. Julien was quiet, but he was still there, Ah felt the pressure o' his arms on my windpipe. It was comfortin' in a way as the miles passed below us in a blur. Through my tearin' eyes, cities looked like blotches o' brilliant watercolor.
Ah overshot the southern edge o' Louisiana. All of a sudden there was nothin' but darkness beneath us, inky an' deep.
"Hold on!" Ah called ta Julien. We made a wide loop an' came in low over New Orleans. It sparkled. The beauty of it almost broke my heart. Ah still wasn't exactly sure why Ah was even there, ta tempt Remy back? Ta what? It wasn't as if Ah had a home those days. Seemed cruel o' me ta try an' pry him away from his family, 'specially if he didn't want ta be pried. In the face o' that glitterin' city Ah felt small an' grubby.
"Just t' de left," Julien said.
Ah saw it a split second before he did: flames from the house reflected in the dark water. It was too soon. It was like watchin' the Institute burn. "No!" Ah shouted, tearin' toward the ground faster than Ah thought possible. Julien bounced off my back. Ah could barely feel it. Ah rocketed through the wall, right into the heart o' the fire.
* * *
evolutionary spider: patience mon petit fromage (that's my little cheese...it's a joke, a bad one too), I plan on revealing more about Rogue's troubles eventually. RE: Nawlins, I always knew Rogue would make it to the Big Easy...eventually.
Neurotic Temptress: I'm trying to handle the whole Julien/Bella thing with as much tact and sensitivity as I can. Like I said, I find the concept pretty distasteful, but the fun part is to try and get past that.
Erica: Rogue's in New Orleans now! And right in the middle of things as usual...
Lucky439: Yes, yes it is kinky. But that's the way I like it. ;-)
starlightz6: Yup, Julien is one perv of a brother, but I'm hoping that that's not ALL he is.
kitana: no problem with the a/n. Yeah, Remy will have some explaining to do when Rogue finds him. I don't want to make it too easy for her though...
ariesque: thanks much! I apologize that I'm not with the lightning fast updates like I was with my last story. RL has a way of sucking up lots of time. Sighs.
Henri had shaved his head since I'd been gone. On a normal twenty year-old de look would have been edgy and strange, somet'ing like Billy Corgan. Since I knew Henri, knew what he was like, reminded me more of someone's bald nonc (uncle). Had t' bite my tongue t' keep from telling him dat of course.
I liked Mercy right away. She was a beautiful girl wit' heavy strawberry blonde hair an' blue eyes dat always seemed t' be eager t' see new t'ings. Henri assured me dat she was a fine t'ief in her own right.
"Fact is, I'm t'inking of sponsoring her for Guild membership," he told me. We were sitting in de living room after dinner. Jean-Luc was off on some mysterious business, probably related t' de Antiquary. I shuddered t' t'ink of de man and so it was like Henri knew what I was t'inkin' an' changed de subject.
"Ah shure do appreciate it, darlin'," Mercy said putting on an exaggerated southern accent. She leapt nimbly over de back of de couch and settled herself into Henri's side. Jean-Luc was letting her stay at de house, in a separate room of course. Vraisemblablement (most likely) I'd hear de quiet footsteps along de floorboards dat night. Henri was de dutiful son, but he was no saint.
"Henri's de best," I told her in all honesty. "He sponsored me. What's de expression? Tough but fair."
"Not too tough, I hope," Mercy laughed. She poked Henri gently in de ribs and I felt a stab o' regret dat a certain pair of gray eyes were so far away from me right den. Mercy must have been studying my face carefully, because den she asked, "What's dis Emil tells me about a girl, Remy?"
Henri unwound Mercy's hair from his fingers and sat up straighter. "Never heard about dis."
Dey were both leaning forward, looking at me, and coo-yon (foolish) man dat I am, I could feel my face getting hot.
"Never seen him like dis," Henri told Mercy. "Y'd t'ink he never had a girlfriend before. What's her name, Remy?"
"Rogue."
Mercy and Henri looked at each other. "Biker or rock star?" Henri asked.
"Professional wrestler?" Mercy suggested.
I rolled my eyes and sighed. "I don't see why I bother wit' you." Looked sharply at Mercy. "Either of you." Dey knew I wasn't being serious.
Dey laughed. "What's she like?" Mercy asked.
It's such a deceptively simple question, but de thoughts o' Rogue filled my head too fast t' sort. What she was like was a smell and a texture, a reluctant smile half-seen, de hard bite of a new apple.
All I could do was shrug an' say, "She's not like anyone else."
In Jean-Luc's house dere's never much time for regret. Etienne came racing into de room on his rollerblades. Emil was hot on his heels, yelling for him t' stop, laughing at de same time. Etienne jumped onto de coffee table, scattering magazines everywhere. Reflexively, I reached out and grabbed Etienne around de waist, pulling him onto de couch wit' me.
"Why you so gumbo ya-ya (loud and boisterous)?" I asked him.
Emil skidded to a stop an' dropped t' de other side of me, breathing hard. "'m gettin' too old for dis," he panted.
I looked at him out of de corner of my eye. "Get no arguments from me, podna (dude)."
Emil smacked me lightly across de back of my head. "Enculé (bastard)," he said wit'out malice. "Etienne's just restless is all. Kids!"
"I'm no kid!" Etienne put in indignantly.
"You'll always be a peeshwank (runt) t' me." Emil grinned, showing all his teeth.
"Dat's right, tomorrow's de big day," Mercy cut in, wit' a warning look t' Emil. "You know what de're going t' ask you t' do?"
Etienne shook his head. His blonde hair was longish and it fell into his eyes. Distracted, he brushed it away. "Dey never tell you 'till right before," he explained seriously. Mercy looked like she wanted t' laugh at his grave face, but like Mattie she knew better den t' find humor in someone else's passion.
"You on duty tonight, Emil?" she asked him.
Emil rubbed de back of his neck. "Yeah. Makes me kinda crazy t' sit here."
"Y' got t' punch de time clock just like de rest of us," Henri cut in.
"I know dat, Henri, but dat doesn't mean I have t' like it."
It was den dat it happened. Everyt'ing seemed t' get real clear. I could see all of dem sitting dere, talking 'bout not'ing. De words surrounded me until I felt warm. Was filled wit' de relief of being home. Dis was de place where I could be understood. Sitting dere wit' all de family, any problems I'd had or was likely t' have seemed insubstantial as a dream.
But in a dream, de living room window doesn't shatter. No explosives go off in de living room. De living room wall doesn't collapse in a roar.
* * *
"Don't know what Julien should mean ta me," Ah snapped.
"Julien Boudreaux," he said, with that same awful sadness.
That stopped me cold, took all the sting outta my anger. Ah lowered him ta the ground, raised my hand ta my mouth, as if Ah could prevent what Ah was about ta say. "You're her brother?" The words came out in a strangled whisper.
It was his turn ta raise his hands. He covered his eyes an' pulled his fingers through his hair until it stood out in wild tufts. "It's a foutre (fuck up). It isn't right. I know dat." He fell more than sat on the ground an' looked up at me as if Ah might offer him some kinda forgiveness.
"Are ya shittin' me, Julien Boudreaux? Are ya tellin' the truth 'bout Remy an' your sister?" Ah half-hated myself for askin', but Ah just had ta know. Ah had ta know if Ah should crush all his gifts into a trillion pieces.
"Non," Julien said. "Wish dat I was. Last night, heard Marius--dat's my father--talking on de phone. He's made some kind of deal wit' someone 'bout de future o' de Guilds. If Remy and Bella get married, den every t'ief an' assassin in Nawlins come under dere control. It's de security of my father's old age."
That stopped me. Ah felt the air go outta me. Everythin' Julien said only made me realize more an' more how little Ah really knew 'bout Remy an' his family. Guilds? He might as well have been royalty. A strange kind o' royalty, but royalty nonetheless. Ah felt like the ground had been knocked out from under my feet, plus my head was still swimmin' a little from before. Ah tried ta will the dizziness away. Ah didn't want ta think 'bout what it might mean.
Ah looked at Julien hard, unsure o' what ta do. "Whaddya want from me?" My voice was risin' again. Ah knew it was unfair o' me ta take out all my frustrations on Julien. Obviously, the boy had his own problems, an' big ones at that, but it didn't mean Ah could stop myself.
He looked at me just like Ah'd grown another head. "I want you t' come back wit' me. Talk some sense into dem."
Ah narrowed my eyes. "An' Ah'm sure that serves your interests more than mine. Ah'm supposed ta do all the dirty work so you can have your sister all ta yourself?" Ah couldn't repress a visible shudder. "That's just a little too weird for me, thanks."
"Guess y' don't love him, den."
That's when Ah got real mad. "Who said anythin' 'bout love? Ah've barely had time ta myself ta think 'bout love! Ah don't even think ya love your sister, Ah think you just don't want ta share her because you're selfish." His hand shot out, but Ah grabbed his wrist, squeezing it just enough ta make a line appear between his eyebrows. "Ah wouldn't fuck with me if Ah were you."
For a moment we were both quiet, facin' each other down, breathin' heavy. "You don't know me..." he began.
"That's right. Ah don't. An' you don't know me. So we're even."
He looked uncertain. "So what you planning t' do?"
Ah sighed. My thinkin' had been so confused lately with the hotels an' the gifts an' Jean wearin' herself out with lookin' for the professor an' the rest o' us wearin' ourselves out with worry. Ah picked up the bottle o' perfume. It was deep ruby in the dim light. Ah turned it, watchin' as sparks caught along the surface. It was a bottle o' fire an' Ah had a sinkin' feelin' that Ah didn't really know what Ah was in for. Sometimes Ah felt like if Ah just had a day ta think everythin' over it'd all come clear an' the weight in my chest would go away. My vision crossed an' Ah saw double for a second. Ah blinked it away. "Put your arms around my neck. Whatever ya do, don't touch my skin, it's a little crowded inside my head right now." Ah gave him a rueful smile. "Let's see how fast we get there."
Julien did exactly what Ah told him ta do and that made me happy. Outside, headlights flashed through the curtain from the parking lot. Probably Scott an' the rest o' them. Ah felt a pang ta be leavin' 'em, but Ah didn't see how Ah could help. Ah took a deep breath, opened the door an' kicked off into the sky.
Thought Ah heard someone shout my name (Kitty?) but Ah didn't look back ta see. Felt good ta have the wind whippin' in my face. Tears ran down my face an' over my neck. Ah pushed myself faster. Julien was quiet, but he was still there, Ah felt the pressure o' his arms on my windpipe. It was comfortin' in a way as the miles passed below us in a blur. Through my tearin' eyes, cities looked like blotches o' brilliant watercolor.
Ah overshot the southern edge o' Louisiana. All of a sudden there was nothin' but darkness beneath us, inky an' deep.
"Hold on!" Ah called ta Julien. We made a wide loop an' came in low over New Orleans. It sparkled. The beauty of it almost broke my heart. Ah still wasn't exactly sure why Ah was even there, ta tempt Remy back? Ta what? It wasn't as if Ah had a home those days. Seemed cruel o' me ta try an' pry him away from his family, 'specially if he didn't want ta be pried. In the face o' that glitterin' city Ah felt small an' grubby.
"Just t' de left," Julien said.
Ah saw it a split second before he did: flames from the house reflected in the dark water. It was too soon. It was like watchin' the Institute burn. "No!" Ah shouted, tearin' toward the ground faster than Ah thought possible. Julien bounced off my back. Ah could barely feel it. Ah rocketed through the wall, right into the heart o' the fire.
* * *
evolutionary spider: patience mon petit fromage (that's my little cheese...it's a joke, a bad one too), I plan on revealing more about Rogue's troubles eventually. RE: Nawlins, I always knew Rogue would make it to the Big Easy...eventually.
Neurotic Temptress: I'm trying to handle the whole Julien/Bella thing with as much tact and sensitivity as I can. Like I said, I find the concept pretty distasteful, but the fun part is to try and get past that.
Erica: Rogue's in New Orleans now! And right in the middle of things as usual...
Lucky439: Yes, yes it is kinky. But that's the way I like it. ;-)
starlightz6: Yup, Julien is one perv of a brother, but I'm hoping that that's not ALL he is.
kitana: no problem with the a/n. Yeah, Remy will have some explaining to do when Rogue finds him. I don't want to make it too easy for her though...
ariesque: thanks much! I apologize that I'm not with the lightning fast updates like I was with my last story. RL has a way of sucking up lots of time. Sighs.