Note : Pfew! Longest chapter ever, I think. And don't worry, ishandahalf, the sweet gentle sexy Remy will come back. I don't own the characters. If I did, I'd be writing a book, not a fanfiction ("fan" being the important word here. As in "I love what other people created and use it for fun? Yeah). Sorry for the long time without no updates, but I had some problems with the uploads. The problem seems to be resolved, though, so I'm back with fast updates and a lot of new ideas.

Enjoy.

Chapter 25

Mr. Hyde

I woke up in the middle of the night and sat up, shivering and gasping as waves of sensations ran up and down my sweaty body. I kept having dreams where Remy and I made love, where Remy was his normal charming and sexy self. I missed him, his smile, his voice, his body… I closed my eyes as a tear ran down my cheek, round as a pearl.

He had "left" a week ago, trashing through the laboratory window, and we haven't been able to track him since then. His mental shield seemed to be strong enough to block even Cerebro's tracking, and we were all beginning to think we would have to wait for him to come back and show himself.

If he did.

I was crying by now, and a small purring sound came from the other side of the bed. Remy's cat wasn't looking very healthy, I had to admit. The poor thing had stopped eating for almost a week, refusing any food provided, even cheese and meat. The cat venerated Remy as if he was the Mighty Cat God, and would never be very far if Remy was on the mansion grounds. Now Remy was gone and the cat was letting itself starve to death, left alone without a reason to live. It liked me enough, though, to raise its thin furry body and come by my side, purring and closing its eyes as I gently let my fingers run through the deep black and white furr. It was comforting, I thought. No matter Remy loved the small beast. I had always considered the Gambit like a cat, slender, moving without a sound, surprising his prey, always aware of everything around him. He was as "cat" as Logan was "dog". It was a miracle these two could stand each other, let alone get along well. I gave a deep sigh and layed back, the cat climbing on my chest to lay down, its baseball-like head between my breasts, purring with complete abandon as I let my hand on its side, feeling the small chest rise with its breathing, the purr fading slowly as the cat went back to sleep. The little heart was beating fast under my hand, and a lump grew in my throat when my fingers felt his ribs just under the skin. If Remy didn't come back, that cat would die, I was sure of it.

I turned my head to look out the window. Everything was silent and the july air was hot and humid. It was a sure thing I couldn't go back to sleep, so I pushed the cat aside and got up. Maybe I could go for a walk in the park, to clear my head and think of something else. "Think of something else? Dream are what keeps you alive, hein?" I snorted ironically to myself.

I walked to the closet and slowly opened it so the old hinges wouldn't creak. As I rumaged for some clothes to wear, something fell on the floor, and I bent to pick it up. Remy's leather coat, the one he wore to go motorbiking. The leather was soft and used, he must have had that coat for years. I put my nose in the collar and the smell of men's cologne and cigarette went up my nose, bringing tears to my eyes in memory. I held it to my chest, eyes closed, and sighed before putting it back in the closet. Something made a clinging noise in one of the pockets, and I searched in it. I pulled back my hand from the pocket to retrieve a set of keys, with a small Harley Davidson metal key holder. I held my breath. Nobody had ever touched Remy's "toy", as he called it. I remembered him kneeling next to it in the driveway as he washed it a few weeks ago, gently rubbing the chrome with a clean cloth, softly humming a blues song to himself as the sun shone on the metal of the bike. Driving it was his getaway, his way of being alone with his thoughts. He had taken me relunctantly on some short rides, but had never let anyone drive it. A small smile made its way on my face, as I imagined myself on the powerful motorcycle. My small red Honda bike figured like a kids toy, standing next to the black and chrome Harley. I swallowed hard, deciding if I should…

I dressed up and grabbed the coat, the keys squeezed thight in my hand. I was going for a ride on the forbidden bike.

***************

Carried away with the sound of the motor between my legs, I rode on deserted roads until the first sun rays shone on the horizon. I put the bike to a stop to listen to the silence, and turned my head to see I was in front of a kids park. I left the bike and walked to the swings, sitting on one of the wooden small benchs. The criquets were singing in a joyful chorus in the trees around me, and I lifted my chin up to look at the sky, where the last stars were slowly fading. Everything was peaceful around me, and yet I felt great turmoil inside my body, gripping my stomach and making me feel sick. Would everything return to normal? To what I liked?

Would Remy come back? Would he be my Remy again, or some evil stranger with terrible forces controling his mind? I heard a suddent small noise and looked towards the Harley, where a man was standing, looming over the bike, putting a hand on the seat still warm from the ride. "Hey yah! Get away from that bike!" I yelled, rising to my feet and hovering a few inches off the grounds, ready to leap on the stranger. His head jerked up at the sound of my voice, and I gasped when a small red twinkle glowing in his eyes. I froze, remembering the monster he had become in the lab.

"I can't believe y'took m'bike" he just said. I half-shrugged, ready to fly away from any attack, but unsure if he was his normal self again or if it was a lure.

"Ah needed to get away, and couldn't sleep. It seemed to work well on yah, so Ah decided to try." He smiled a bit.

"Yeah, works well enough. I'd probably blow it off now, though." The smile suddently dissapeared and his features darkened. He quickly drew back his hand from the seat. He looked at me a long time, and sighed. He turned and slowly stroded to a bench under a street lamp, not far from me. He sat hard on the bench, and leaned forward, putting his elbows on his knees and letting his fingers run in his hair, head dropped down in despair. He had been wearing simple cotton trousers in the med lab, but he had managed to get (or steal) some jeans and a long sleeves shirt that must had been white in another life. He had some black combat boots on, and my heart gave a leap at the sight of the wide gold band on his ring finger, shinning in the light of the new sun rays. My thumb moved involuntarily, playing with my own wedding ring. A lump formed in my throath, seeing him immobile and despaired. I missed him so much… and he was there, only a few feet away. But I still remembered the scene in the lab, though, and knew what Sinister was capable of, including using Remy as bait. I took a few steps forward, but stayed aware, watching his every move.

He didn't move, though. But he talked. "I'm so sorry, Rogue… I just can't believe…" He let his hands drop in front of him and lifted his head, staring at an invisible spot in the grass in front of him. "I could see everythin'… I could see yer eyes, looking so scared, I could feel my hands on yer throath but… but I couldn't stop it. Dammit, I couldn't even control it!" He squeezed his eyes shut, his adams apple bobbing up and down in his throath. "If y'would die in m'hands, Rogue, I'd just die of it m'self." I swallowed and moved a step further.

"What's hap'ning to yah, sugah?" I asked gently. He opened his eyes, still staring into space.

"He… he took control of me. Sometimes he just leaves me alone, like now, but he always comes back, takin' control of my mind, using m'body like a string muppet… The first times I remember. But now, it's like I loose consciousness… I just wake up, with no notion of de things he might have made me do." He looked down, stretching his fingers in front of his face, and I saw him make a wry smile as his right hand went to his gold ring, making it turn around his finger. Then his hands balled into fists, and I could see him hunch slightly as another ton of pressure fell on his shoulders. I walked the last feet separating me from him, and kneeled in front of him. I raised my gloved hands to his bearded cheeks, and looked into the red depths. His eyes were wet, and behind the harsh features, I could see despair in his eyes. And fear. A lot of fear. His eyes squinted slightly and filled with tears, and he began to shake as I put my arms around his shoulders and craddled him like a small kid. He sobbed in my neck, shaking and holding me tight against his chest. I rocked him slowly as violent shivers went through his shoulders, and after some time his voice came out, muffled in the leather coat.

"Why? What's he doin' t'me?" he croaked, his voice shaking.

"Ah don't know, sugah, but we're gonna find out." He sighed deeply and drew back, letting me go. He sniffed, letting his hands run on my arms, caressing the soft black leather.

"My coat… So dat's where y'found the keys." He tried to smile but his face broke again, and he closed his eyes, squeezing them shut. "I'm so scared, Rogue. I don't understand what's happenin' t'me, and I'm scared like hell." I put my hands on his shoulders, and felt the tension in the hard muscles under the thin cotton shirt.

"We'll find a way to get yah outta this, Remy. Believe me." I shook him slightly. "Believe me." He opened his eyes and looked into mine. His hands drew up and he cupped my cheek, and the corners of his mouth quirked up a bit. He opened his mouth to reply, but he frowned, seeing I had completely frozen. He pulled back his hand and suddently realized he had just touched my bare skin.

"You go out it the middle of the night, wanderin' in de parks, and you don't have yer powers?"

"Remy, I… I have mah powers. I didn't take the pills." He frowned and stared at me. Suddently he got up, and quickly walked away. "Remy?" He turned back at my calling, and looked at me, fear back in his eyes.

"I'm immuned to ye? Yer powers have no effect on me Rogue! Y'have to leave!" I got back on my feet and shook off some dead leaves that clung to my jeans. My head snapped up at his last words, though, and I felt my cheeks flush, frustrated.

"Leave yah? Ah've been worrying for a week about where you've been, and now…" I didn't finish my sentence. His face had gone blank with shock, and his mouth opened without letting out a sound. Finally he talked.

"A week?" he slowly said. "I've been gone a week?"

"Well… yeah…"

"Rogue, if yer powers have no effect on me, y'have to go, now, before he has control on m'mind again." I opened my mouth to protest, but he raised his hand, stopping me. "I don't wanna hurt you, chérie. I'd hate myself even more if I did." I closed my mouth. I walked to him and put my hand on his chest, feeling the reassuring rising of his chest, and the wild thumping of his heart.

"Okay." He let go the breath he'd been keeping, and closed his eyes in relief. "But the next time you're awake, yah come here, okay? We'll think of some way to get yah outta this, and we'll come for yah here. Okay?" He opened eyes full of hope on me, and started to nod, but he suddently squeezed his eyes shut and moaned, as his hands went up to his head, finger gripping on his hair. I froze, then realized what was happening. I walked back.

"Leave. Rogue. Fast." He murmured. I turned back and ran to the motorcycle, inserting the key in the ignitor and starting the powerful engine.

As the motorcycle took up some speed and flew on the street, I looked back to see my husband, kneeling in the grass, his head in his hands. And as I looked back at the street, I made a promise, to him and to myself, to get him out of this shit.

To be continued!