* * *
Remy was nervous an' distracted that evenin'. After dinner, he muttered somethin' 'bout seein' me around, kissed my head absently an' shut himself in his room. Ah had a sneakin' suspicion he was gonna spend the rest o' the time goin' over the floor plan for the school. He'd commit everythin' ta memory like a good thief an' then he'd feel like he was in control o' the situation.
As if gettin' lost was the worst thing he'd have ta worry about.
Ah knew that he'd never be in control, but Ah also knew enough not ta tell him that. Just bein' in our presence would be enough ta mark him as strange. But that was just somethin' he'd have ta find out on his own. Ah stuck my head into the TV room. Scott an' Jean were curled up on the couch. There was a movie on, but Ah couldn't tell if either o' them were watchin' it at all. My neck tingled as Ah looked at 'em. The last thing Ah needed was ta be jealous of the happy couple. Ah couldn't help thinkin' how nice it might be ta be with someone without the help o' gadgets an' beams.
Kitty was up in our room, sprawled out across her bed. There were books an' papers everywhere.
"Looks like a tornado hit, Dorothy," Ah told her.
"Ha ha. Very funny. Not all of us, like, locked ourselves up in our rooms all weekend. Some of us still have homework and junk."
Deliberately, Ah sat down on my bed an' opened my history book. Kitty looked at me quizzically. "My mind wasn't exactly on it before," Ah explained.
"Really?" She raised her eyebrows and looked intrigued.
"Really."
"So just what were you thinking about?"
"Different things. People," Ah sidestepped her question.
"I'll bet." Kitty, bounced into a sitting position. "I heard you were in his room Friday night."
"God damn Kurt."
"Hey, chill. I heard it from Ray."
"Ray? How the hell did he know?"
Kitty shrugged. "He does have, like, a major crush on you, y'know. I think it's cute."
Ah snorted. "Right."
"You can believe whatever. But you were in Remy's room, right?"
"Is it a crime ta be in someone's room now? Ah'll bet ya were in Lance's room plenty o' times when you two were goin' out."
It was a low blow. Despite the months, Kitty still hurt sometimes because o' what had happened between her and Lance. Like an ache when it rained. She blushed a little an' looked down at her hands clasped tightly in her lap. "I guess," she said miserably.
Ah felt bad for sayin' what Ah had. "Yeah, Ah was in his room."
"So, like, what did you..." she looked up an' saw my face. "Oh my god! You guys did it! How did you...I mean...wow...I mean...."
"There's a lot of 'it' ta do, okay? We didn't do all of it."
"So are you still...I mean..."
Ah looked at her steadily. "Ah know what ya mean an' don't take this the wrong way, but Ah don't see how it's any o' your business."
Kitty's eyes got real big. So big Ah could practically see the gears movin' inside. "I guess you really like him, huh?"
"Ah guess Ah really do."
She bit her lip. "It's weird, y'know, like I'm used to knowing everything about everyone, but everything's been so crazy with the professor and you running off. I don't know anything about you two." Ah squinted at her, disapproving and she continued with a nervous laugh. "Not that I need to know anything, but I'm your friend, right? I like knowing when stuff is up. And this is pretty major."
Ah didn't know what ta say ta that. Her worry was touchin', but Ah struggled against a biting response because, worry or not, she was threatenin' my privacy. Luckily, Ah was saved by a knock on the door.
"Rogue, it's Ororo, can I come in?"
"It's open!" Kitty yelled, before Ah had a chance ta think. Ah scowled at her and she stuck out her tongue at me.
Ororo gently pushed th' door open. She had a way o' openin' a door an' enterin' a room that made it seem like she was partin' lots o' delicate, silk curtains. Her movements were graceful in a way that sometimes made me feel small an' grubby in comparison.
"What's up, Ms. Munroe?"
She looked at Kitty a moment an' Ah saw a flutter o' nervousness cross her usually unflappable face. "I'd rather not say right here. Come with me, please." She held my elbow an' brought me ta my feet. Ah caught a half- glimpse o' Kitty's puzzled face as we left.
Ororo led me downstairs, into th' professor's study. The lights were down an' he was starin' intently at a fuzzy videotape, but he shut it off when he heard us come in.
"Rogue," he said, swivelin' ta face me. "Please, have a seat."
Ah sat, but Ah couldn't keep still. My fingers drummed frantic Morse code messages on my knees. "What's wrong?" All Ah could think of was that they'd found out about th' necklace an' they were gonna make me give it up. Ah turned cold at the thought. Ah seemed ta hear the professor as if he was speakin' down a well.
"We were reviewing the surveillance tapes and came across something...troubling. We thought you might be able to shed some light on it for us," the professor explained.
Ororo squeezed my shoulder. Her hand was warm an' comfortin'. The professor pressed the 'play' button on the VCR an' an image o' the outside o' the Institute popped onto the screen. While Ah watched, a little blurry figure shimmied across the outer wall.
"This isn't the first time he's done this," the professor observed. "It seems our Mr. LeBeau is a bit stir crazy."
There was a bright flash an' Ah saw Remy tumble off the wall. My heart jumped into my mouth, even though Ah knew he was okay. He scrambled ta the ground and started talkin' ta someone. At first the angle was bad, but then, they moved an' Ah could see clear as day.
John.
My face went cold an' my head spun a little. Seemed like Ororo's hand was the only thing holdin' me upright in the chair.
No.
"Can you think of any reason why Remy would be meeting with St. John Allerdyce?"
"It...it must be some kinda trick. Ya saw how John attacked Remy."
"Yes," the professor agreed, "that's what I thought too, until I asked Ororo to follow him earlier today. He and St. John met in a pre-arranged location not far from here."
So that's why he was out on the road this afternoon.
Ah felt hollow.
"Can you think of any reason he and St. John would be meeting in secret?" Ororo asked, adding, "Rogue?" after Ah hadn't replied.
"Some kind o' mistake," Ah protested weakly. "It must all just be some kind o' mistake."
"We're sorry you had to see this, Rogue," the professor said kindly. "You can go now."
Ah rose ta my feet an' left the room, hearin' the soft, serious murmur o' their voices through the door after Ah closed it.
* * *
"I want you to take the bowl and tilt it at a 45 degree angle. Then, you take your whisk and beat the egg whites briskly until they start to get frothy. Don't beat them too much, or you won't get any height on your soufflé."
De whisk felt strange in my hand, but as long as I saw it as another tool t' master, I wasn't half bad. Dere was enough talent in my hands t' cover a variety of t'ings.
Suddenly, de teacher's voice was in my ear. "Looking good, Mr. LeBeau. Give it about 30 seconds more before you pour it into the rest of your ingredients."
De class had been a surprise t' me. I had expected somet'ing horrible, but it wasn't anywhere near dat. I was de only male and dat had caused some giggles in de younger girls when I walked in, but I'd ignored dem and staked out a stove at de side of de room. Been secretly grateful when de teacher--Ms. Rose--hadn't made me introduce myself. Kitty's was de only face I knew.
But t'ings just seemed t' fly together under my touch. Dat's not t' say dat I was in a rush. I did everyt'ing carefully. Assembling de cheese soufflé had come easy from dat care. Reminded me of de time Henri first taught me t' crack a safe. "No sense in de rush," he'd said. "Do it right de first time and you'll do it better each time after."
I poured my egg whites into de rest of de ingredients, stirred carefully and den poured de whole t'ing into a dish. Set de dish in a pan of water and put everyt'ing in de oven.
Was reminded of Tante Mattie's cooking, dat always seemed half method an' half magic. De same ingredients combined t' make somet'ing slightly different each time.
After home ec came lunch and I wanted t' see Rogue. We'd barely glimpsed each other, both running out of de house dat morning. Dere was somet'ing 'bout her dat seemed quieter dan normal and I wanted t' find out why. I also wanted t' feed her some of my soufflé and hear her exclaim wit' surprise an' delight.
Had de necklace in my pocket and I could feel it every time I took a step, but I didn't know exactly what t' do wit' it. Obviously, I couldn't leave it in my room where anyone might find it. Too many years of hiding my t'ings. Too many t'ieves in de family. Stuck my hand in my pocket and ran de tip of one finger along de metal.
"Hey," Kitty slid over t' my oven. "I can't believe it," she said, wit' mock anger, "it's your first day and you're totally mopping the floor with me. Tell me you've done this before." She had flour dusted in de ends of her hair. Amazing considering dat dere was no flour in de soufflé.
Shook my head. "Watched a lot while my Tante Mattie cooked t'ings."
"Tante?"
"Like aunt. My Aunt Mattie."
"Oh, okay." Kitty wrinkled up her nose. "Still, that makes it even more unfair."
"Promise t' burn somet'ing tomorrow if dat makes you feel better, chére."
"Nah." She laughed. "I'm only taking this dumb class because woodshop was full."
"Lance?" Rogue had told me all 'bout Lance and Kitty, but it felt strange t' be making a comment about somet'ing I hadn't been witness to.
Kitty blushed a little. "At first. But I actually kinda like it. I'm really good with the lathe," she finished proudly. I was surprised at dat, den ashamed dat I should be so quick t' judge someone on dere manners and dress. "So can I, like, ask you something?" she asked after a silence.
"Shoot."
"Did you and Rogue, y'know..."
"God damn Kurt."
She rolled her eyes. "Why does everyone keep saying that? There are other people in the house, you know."
"Right."
"It wasn't Kurt!" Kitty protested defensively. I'd noticed dat she was quick t' protect Kurt's honor in general and I wondered 'bout de history between dem. "Just forget I ever said anything, okay? It's none of my business."
"Got dat right."
"It's just that...well...Rogue's never done anything like this before and I know she likes to seem all tough," Kitty bit her lip, "but she's really not in some ways. And I can tell there's something wrong. I'm worried."
I sighed. Never could resist a femme in distress, but it was better t' tell her what she needed t' hear den t' tell her de whole truth. "We didn't."
"What?"
"We didn't. T'ink 'bout it, how could we? Rogue is Rogue and last I checked, y' had t' be able t' touch someone t' have sex."
Kitty's mouth dropped open a bit. "Shhh," she hissed. "Not so loud." Amazing how young she seemed sometimes. Or maybe it was dat she was young and I expected her t' act older since she spent some of her spare time helping t' save de world now and den. "Your soufflé is burning." She tossed de words over her shoulder on her way back t' her own oven.
"Putain (fucking hell)!" I yanked it out of de oven. Luckily, only de edges were ruined--slightly more brown dan dey should have been. I saw Kitty pull her dish out of de oven and eye it dubiously.
Ms. Rose appeared at my elbow. "Try to give it about five minutes less next time, okay?"
Felt de suggestion like I'd been stung. "Okay," I agreed forcing as much cheerfulness into my voice as possible.
Carefully, I cut a slice out of my soufflé and put it on a paper plate. De bell rang and I wove my way t'rough de crowds, heading for Rogue's locker. While I waited, I looked ruefully at de food I'd made dat was seeming more pitiful by de minute. Nervous, I stuck my hand into my pocket, brushing de necklace. It felt grittier somehow. When I took my hand out of my pocket dere were tiny scratches and specks of blood on my fingertips. Wrapped my hand into my coat, took out de necklace and brought it close t' my face. As I watched, tiny spikes, fluid as sea anemones, extended and grew.
* * *
Lady MR, Lucky439 + Niteflite: and to think, you only had to wait about a week for another update. Ah the holidays. And houseguests. And presents. All I want for Christmas is for Santa to give me a shiny, new radiator for my car. ;-) Glad you're enjoying it!
ishandahalf: ahhh, no St. John in this one...well, not really, although his name did come up. But the plot thickens, right? Right? Jeez, no Remy/Rogue interaction either. But they were thinking about each other! And there was Kitty! I like Kitty okay, she's misunderstood or underestimated or something. At least my version of Kitty is.
starlightz6: sweat it not about the reviewing thing. They're tan-fastic when I get them, although I love writing so much I'd probably still be doin' it even with no feedback at all. I'll admit, reviews sweeten the niceness though.
Sujakata: I think Remy has mixed feelings about the Institute certainly. The problem with Remy (at least in the comics) is that he doesn't seem to have much purpose or direction to his life. He doesn't know what he wants, so at a certain point his motivations become completely fabricated on my part.
Lace123: The last two stories were both kind of like a warm up for this one. Now that I'm pretty comfortable writing both characters and I'm confident that my little corner of the A.U.-verse is humming along nicely I feel like I've got more freedom to allow things to happen. As a result: mystery! romance! other x-men in an evo story! It's all very exciting. I have a very love/hate-type relationship with the holidays. Distributing gifts when most of the recipients are scattered to the far corners of the country is not high on my list of fun things to do. On the other hand, I do like those chocolate oranges that always come around about this time every year...
xgirlrogue: See, now THAT would be the twist with Remy in home ec. I think it's cool that he's a super good cook and I thought it would be fun to work with that a little, even if he did spend most of his time yakking to Kitty.
Neurotic Temptress: Thank you [blushes]. I suppose I should explain about the snowball fight. My thought was that when Remy said Rogue was warm, it was because he had his hands over her clothes but under her jacket, since he's constantly chilly. I think next chapter will definitely have to feature more of Remy-in-school. The situation is full of possibilities.
evolutionary spider: Aha! More necklace mysteries. And weirdness. As far as Aussie slang is concerned, the main sites I use are:
1. The Alternative Dictionaries (http://www.notam02.no/~hcholm/altlang/stat.html): a fun site with tons of slang from every language imaginable. I picked up some of Piotr's Russian here for the first story. There is a little bit of Cajun listed both under "Cajun" and "Acadian."
2. Karen's Place in Cyberspace (http://www.geocities.com/SouthBeach/Breakers/8092/ozslang.htm): a really extensive collection of Aussie slang
3. The Charged Deck (http://www.sphosting.com/thecelt/Cajunlang.html): a Gambit-oriented fan page with a ton of useful Cajun phrases.
4. The Cajun Language (http://www.geocities.com/tokyo/flats/4396/language.html): lots here, but it's a big page and may take a while to load.
* * *
In the immortal words of Krusty the Clown: Have a merry Christmas, happy Hannukah, kwazy Kwanzaa, a tip-top Tet, and a solemn and dignified Ramadan. [a.n.--yeah, I know some of these are over, whatever]
Remy was nervous an' distracted that evenin'. After dinner, he muttered somethin' 'bout seein' me around, kissed my head absently an' shut himself in his room. Ah had a sneakin' suspicion he was gonna spend the rest o' the time goin' over the floor plan for the school. He'd commit everythin' ta memory like a good thief an' then he'd feel like he was in control o' the situation.
As if gettin' lost was the worst thing he'd have ta worry about.
Ah knew that he'd never be in control, but Ah also knew enough not ta tell him that. Just bein' in our presence would be enough ta mark him as strange. But that was just somethin' he'd have ta find out on his own. Ah stuck my head into the TV room. Scott an' Jean were curled up on the couch. There was a movie on, but Ah couldn't tell if either o' them were watchin' it at all. My neck tingled as Ah looked at 'em. The last thing Ah needed was ta be jealous of the happy couple. Ah couldn't help thinkin' how nice it might be ta be with someone without the help o' gadgets an' beams.
Kitty was up in our room, sprawled out across her bed. There were books an' papers everywhere.
"Looks like a tornado hit, Dorothy," Ah told her.
"Ha ha. Very funny. Not all of us, like, locked ourselves up in our rooms all weekend. Some of us still have homework and junk."
Deliberately, Ah sat down on my bed an' opened my history book. Kitty looked at me quizzically. "My mind wasn't exactly on it before," Ah explained.
"Really?" She raised her eyebrows and looked intrigued.
"Really."
"So just what were you thinking about?"
"Different things. People," Ah sidestepped her question.
"I'll bet." Kitty, bounced into a sitting position. "I heard you were in his room Friday night."
"God damn Kurt."
"Hey, chill. I heard it from Ray."
"Ray? How the hell did he know?"
Kitty shrugged. "He does have, like, a major crush on you, y'know. I think it's cute."
Ah snorted. "Right."
"You can believe whatever. But you were in Remy's room, right?"
"Is it a crime ta be in someone's room now? Ah'll bet ya were in Lance's room plenty o' times when you two were goin' out."
It was a low blow. Despite the months, Kitty still hurt sometimes because o' what had happened between her and Lance. Like an ache when it rained. She blushed a little an' looked down at her hands clasped tightly in her lap. "I guess," she said miserably.
Ah felt bad for sayin' what Ah had. "Yeah, Ah was in his room."
"So, like, what did you..." she looked up an' saw my face. "Oh my god! You guys did it! How did you...I mean...wow...I mean...."
"There's a lot of 'it' ta do, okay? We didn't do all of it."
"So are you still...I mean..."
Ah looked at her steadily. "Ah know what ya mean an' don't take this the wrong way, but Ah don't see how it's any o' your business."
Kitty's eyes got real big. So big Ah could practically see the gears movin' inside. "I guess you really like him, huh?"
"Ah guess Ah really do."
She bit her lip. "It's weird, y'know, like I'm used to knowing everything about everyone, but everything's been so crazy with the professor and you running off. I don't know anything about you two." Ah squinted at her, disapproving and she continued with a nervous laugh. "Not that I need to know anything, but I'm your friend, right? I like knowing when stuff is up. And this is pretty major."
Ah didn't know what ta say ta that. Her worry was touchin', but Ah struggled against a biting response because, worry or not, she was threatenin' my privacy. Luckily, Ah was saved by a knock on the door.
"Rogue, it's Ororo, can I come in?"
"It's open!" Kitty yelled, before Ah had a chance ta think. Ah scowled at her and she stuck out her tongue at me.
Ororo gently pushed th' door open. She had a way o' openin' a door an' enterin' a room that made it seem like she was partin' lots o' delicate, silk curtains. Her movements were graceful in a way that sometimes made me feel small an' grubby in comparison.
"What's up, Ms. Munroe?"
She looked at Kitty a moment an' Ah saw a flutter o' nervousness cross her usually unflappable face. "I'd rather not say right here. Come with me, please." She held my elbow an' brought me ta my feet. Ah caught a half- glimpse o' Kitty's puzzled face as we left.
Ororo led me downstairs, into th' professor's study. The lights were down an' he was starin' intently at a fuzzy videotape, but he shut it off when he heard us come in.
"Rogue," he said, swivelin' ta face me. "Please, have a seat."
Ah sat, but Ah couldn't keep still. My fingers drummed frantic Morse code messages on my knees. "What's wrong?" All Ah could think of was that they'd found out about th' necklace an' they were gonna make me give it up. Ah turned cold at the thought. Ah seemed ta hear the professor as if he was speakin' down a well.
"We were reviewing the surveillance tapes and came across something...troubling. We thought you might be able to shed some light on it for us," the professor explained.
Ororo squeezed my shoulder. Her hand was warm an' comfortin'. The professor pressed the 'play' button on the VCR an' an image o' the outside o' the Institute popped onto the screen. While Ah watched, a little blurry figure shimmied across the outer wall.
"This isn't the first time he's done this," the professor observed. "It seems our Mr. LeBeau is a bit stir crazy."
There was a bright flash an' Ah saw Remy tumble off the wall. My heart jumped into my mouth, even though Ah knew he was okay. He scrambled ta the ground and started talkin' ta someone. At first the angle was bad, but then, they moved an' Ah could see clear as day.
John.
My face went cold an' my head spun a little. Seemed like Ororo's hand was the only thing holdin' me upright in the chair.
No.
"Can you think of any reason why Remy would be meeting with St. John Allerdyce?"
"It...it must be some kinda trick. Ya saw how John attacked Remy."
"Yes," the professor agreed, "that's what I thought too, until I asked Ororo to follow him earlier today. He and St. John met in a pre-arranged location not far from here."
So that's why he was out on the road this afternoon.
Ah felt hollow.
"Can you think of any reason he and St. John would be meeting in secret?" Ororo asked, adding, "Rogue?" after Ah hadn't replied.
"Some kind o' mistake," Ah protested weakly. "It must all just be some kind o' mistake."
"We're sorry you had to see this, Rogue," the professor said kindly. "You can go now."
Ah rose ta my feet an' left the room, hearin' the soft, serious murmur o' their voices through the door after Ah closed it.
* * *
"I want you to take the bowl and tilt it at a 45 degree angle. Then, you take your whisk and beat the egg whites briskly until they start to get frothy. Don't beat them too much, or you won't get any height on your soufflé."
De whisk felt strange in my hand, but as long as I saw it as another tool t' master, I wasn't half bad. Dere was enough talent in my hands t' cover a variety of t'ings.
Suddenly, de teacher's voice was in my ear. "Looking good, Mr. LeBeau. Give it about 30 seconds more before you pour it into the rest of your ingredients."
De class had been a surprise t' me. I had expected somet'ing horrible, but it wasn't anywhere near dat. I was de only male and dat had caused some giggles in de younger girls when I walked in, but I'd ignored dem and staked out a stove at de side of de room. Been secretly grateful when de teacher--Ms. Rose--hadn't made me introduce myself. Kitty's was de only face I knew.
But t'ings just seemed t' fly together under my touch. Dat's not t' say dat I was in a rush. I did everyt'ing carefully. Assembling de cheese soufflé had come easy from dat care. Reminded me of de time Henri first taught me t' crack a safe. "No sense in de rush," he'd said. "Do it right de first time and you'll do it better each time after."
I poured my egg whites into de rest of de ingredients, stirred carefully and den poured de whole t'ing into a dish. Set de dish in a pan of water and put everyt'ing in de oven.
Was reminded of Tante Mattie's cooking, dat always seemed half method an' half magic. De same ingredients combined t' make somet'ing slightly different each time.
After home ec came lunch and I wanted t' see Rogue. We'd barely glimpsed each other, both running out of de house dat morning. Dere was somet'ing 'bout her dat seemed quieter dan normal and I wanted t' find out why. I also wanted t' feed her some of my soufflé and hear her exclaim wit' surprise an' delight.
Had de necklace in my pocket and I could feel it every time I took a step, but I didn't know exactly what t' do wit' it. Obviously, I couldn't leave it in my room where anyone might find it. Too many years of hiding my t'ings. Too many t'ieves in de family. Stuck my hand in my pocket and ran de tip of one finger along de metal.
"Hey," Kitty slid over t' my oven. "I can't believe it," she said, wit' mock anger, "it's your first day and you're totally mopping the floor with me. Tell me you've done this before." She had flour dusted in de ends of her hair. Amazing considering dat dere was no flour in de soufflé.
Shook my head. "Watched a lot while my Tante Mattie cooked t'ings."
"Tante?"
"Like aunt. My Aunt Mattie."
"Oh, okay." Kitty wrinkled up her nose. "Still, that makes it even more unfair."
"Promise t' burn somet'ing tomorrow if dat makes you feel better, chére."
"Nah." She laughed. "I'm only taking this dumb class because woodshop was full."
"Lance?" Rogue had told me all 'bout Lance and Kitty, but it felt strange t' be making a comment about somet'ing I hadn't been witness to.
Kitty blushed a little. "At first. But I actually kinda like it. I'm really good with the lathe," she finished proudly. I was surprised at dat, den ashamed dat I should be so quick t' judge someone on dere manners and dress. "So can I, like, ask you something?" she asked after a silence.
"Shoot."
"Did you and Rogue, y'know..."
"God damn Kurt."
She rolled her eyes. "Why does everyone keep saying that? There are other people in the house, you know."
"Right."
"It wasn't Kurt!" Kitty protested defensively. I'd noticed dat she was quick t' protect Kurt's honor in general and I wondered 'bout de history between dem. "Just forget I ever said anything, okay? It's none of my business."
"Got dat right."
"It's just that...well...Rogue's never done anything like this before and I know she likes to seem all tough," Kitty bit her lip, "but she's really not in some ways. And I can tell there's something wrong. I'm worried."
I sighed. Never could resist a femme in distress, but it was better t' tell her what she needed t' hear den t' tell her de whole truth. "We didn't."
"What?"
"We didn't. T'ink 'bout it, how could we? Rogue is Rogue and last I checked, y' had t' be able t' touch someone t' have sex."
Kitty's mouth dropped open a bit. "Shhh," she hissed. "Not so loud." Amazing how young she seemed sometimes. Or maybe it was dat she was young and I expected her t' act older since she spent some of her spare time helping t' save de world now and den. "Your soufflé is burning." She tossed de words over her shoulder on her way back t' her own oven.
"Putain (fucking hell)!" I yanked it out of de oven. Luckily, only de edges were ruined--slightly more brown dan dey should have been. I saw Kitty pull her dish out of de oven and eye it dubiously.
Ms. Rose appeared at my elbow. "Try to give it about five minutes less next time, okay?"
Felt de suggestion like I'd been stung. "Okay," I agreed forcing as much cheerfulness into my voice as possible.
Carefully, I cut a slice out of my soufflé and put it on a paper plate. De bell rang and I wove my way t'rough de crowds, heading for Rogue's locker. While I waited, I looked ruefully at de food I'd made dat was seeming more pitiful by de minute. Nervous, I stuck my hand into my pocket, brushing de necklace. It felt grittier somehow. When I took my hand out of my pocket dere were tiny scratches and specks of blood on my fingertips. Wrapped my hand into my coat, took out de necklace and brought it close t' my face. As I watched, tiny spikes, fluid as sea anemones, extended and grew.
* * *
Lady MR, Lucky439 + Niteflite: and to think, you only had to wait about a week for another update. Ah the holidays. And houseguests. And presents. All I want for Christmas is for Santa to give me a shiny, new radiator for my car. ;-) Glad you're enjoying it!
ishandahalf: ahhh, no St. John in this one...well, not really, although his name did come up. But the plot thickens, right? Right? Jeez, no Remy/Rogue interaction either. But they were thinking about each other! And there was Kitty! I like Kitty okay, she's misunderstood or underestimated or something. At least my version of Kitty is.
starlightz6: sweat it not about the reviewing thing. They're tan-fastic when I get them, although I love writing so much I'd probably still be doin' it even with no feedback at all. I'll admit, reviews sweeten the niceness though.
Sujakata: I think Remy has mixed feelings about the Institute certainly. The problem with Remy (at least in the comics) is that he doesn't seem to have much purpose or direction to his life. He doesn't know what he wants, so at a certain point his motivations become completely fabricated on my part.
Lace123: The last two stories were both kind of like a warm up for this one. Now that I'm pretty comfortable writing both characters and I'm confident that my little corner of the A.U.-verse is humming along nicely I feel like I've got more freedom to allow things to happen. As a result: mystery! romance! other x-men in an evo story! It's all very exciting. I have a very love/hate-type relationship with the holidays. Distributing gifts when most of the recipients are scattered to the far corners of the country is not high on my list of fun things to do. On the other hand, I do like those chocolate oranges that always come around about this time every year...
xgirlrogue: See, now THAT would be the twist with Remy in home ec. I think it's cool that he's a super good cook and I thought it would be fun to work with that a little, even if he did spend most of his time yakking to Kitty.
Neurotic Temptress: Thank you [blushes]. I suppose I should explain about the snowball fight. My thought was that when Remy said Rogue was warm, it was because he had his hands over her clothes but under her jacket, since he's constantly chilly. I think next chapter will definitely have to feature more of Remy-in-school. The situation is full of possibilities.
evolutionary spider: Aha! More necklace mysteries. And weirdness. As far as Aussie slang is concerned, the main sites I use are:
1. The Alternative Dictionaries (http://www.notam02.no/~hcholm/altlang/stat.html): a fun site with tons of slang from every language imaginable. I picked up some of Piotr's Russian here for the first story. There is a little bit of Cajun listed both under "Cajun" and "Acadian."
2. Karen's Place in Cyberspace (http://www.geocities.com/SouthBeach/Breakers/8092/ozslang.htm): a really extensive collection of Aussie slang
3. The Charged Deck (http://www.sphosting.com/thecelt/Cajunlang.html): a Gambit-oriented fan page with a ton of useful Cajun phrases.
4. The Cajun Language (http://www.geocities.com/tokyo/flats/4396/language.html): lots here, but it's a big page and may take a while to load.
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In the immortal words of Krusty the Clown: Have a merry Christmas, happy Hannukah, kwazy Kwanzaa, a tip-top Tet, and a solemn and dignified Ramadan. [a.n.--yeah, I know some of these are over, whatever]