Ishandhalf: The Black Album, Untitled, and Self Titled are all names used to describe that album Enter Sandman was on. I am a fan of Metallica, but just what came with that album and before it.
Lulu: Thanks for your input on Kurt's accent. I well try to do much better.
Out-foxed, Trunksgirl, Bunny Angel, and me(): Thanks for reviewing J
The Crackle of Power
"Remy" Storm called out while knocking on his door. It was a Friday evening and Logan had asked her to go to a bar, she had come to Remy's room to ask if he was also going. She thought back over the past month and a half, and she couldn't help but smile. With the exception of Scott and Bobby, everyone has accepted her young friend. She figured Bobby didn't accept Remy, because he no longer cleaned out the others on Poker night. Scott was just being stubborn Scott. It seems that Scott liked everything black and white. And Remy preferred to walk in the gray. Over a few beers, him and Logan became quite good friends. Though neither of the two men would ever admit it. Of course Kitty was quite taken with the young Cajun, but it was more of a platonic friendship. Their interests being quite different, whenever the two were in the same room, they would do nothing but bate the other. It was like a brother sister rivalry; it was quite interesting to watch. But the most interesting would have to be the developing 'relationship' between Remy and Rogue. The two spent a lot of time together. Rogue was even nice and flirtatious with him. It was much more open since the Poker game last week. At first Storm was a little worried this would be some kind of game to Remy, but he seemed to genuinely care for the young Gothic Southerner. He was always going out of his way to make her smile, and their interests' match each other, from music to T.V. shows. "Remy, are you in there?" Storm called out again.
"Oui Stormy, de door's open." She heard Remy call from inside his room. Storm entered his room to be shocked by what she saw. A far cry from what he normally wore, usually clad in a worn pair of jeans and a ratty shirt, always with his trench coat flowing from his shoulders. But tonight he wore a pair of tight blue jeans, snakeskin cowboy boats, and a nice flannel shirt, only to be covered with a leather cowboy vest. He then produced a black cowboy hat from his closet, turned and looked at Storm with a slim smile. "Whatchya b'needin Stormy?"
"First of all, do not call me that. And second of all I came to see if you were coming out with Logan and myself. But now I wonder what is with the sudden clothing style change." Before he could answer someone else came barreling into the Remy's room. It was Sam Guthrie. He was also dressed in much the same apparel as Remy, minus a cowboy hat. Storm looked at him, but not quite with the same amount of surprise as she did with Remy. It was common that Sam would dress this way.
"Remy, Ah'm ready, and Mr. Logan said ta tell ya'll all ta hurry up." Sam said in a rush. "That goes for ya too, Miss Munroe."
"Aren't you a little young to be going to a bar Samuel." Storm asked her young charge.
"Change o' plans Stormy, not going t' a bar t'night, dere be a Barn Dance about thirty miles south o' here, I t'ought it b' fun." Remy said as he began shuffling everyone out of his room. "Now let's hurry b'fore Logan has a breakdown."
"I am not dressed for such an event though Remy…" Storm began to compare her own attire, although wasn't by any means fancy, she would surely feel out of place at an event like the one they were attending. But her protest was interrupted by the only other southern drawl in the mansion.
"Well GOOWWLLEE, donchya just look good nough tah eat Sugah!" Rogue said in a long drawn out Southern accent as she came up behind Storm, Sam and Remy. Storms studied Rogue, as she came up and place a gloved hand on Remy's chest. Rogue was dressed in a long jean skirt and also adorned a simple white shirt, with a Denim Jacket over it. She also had her soft suede gloves to protect everyone from her powers. She also wore make up, but it wasn't layered as heavily as it would be. "Swamp Rat ya'll ready, Logan's down in the truck and ah do not wanna be tha one tah go down there and tell him that ya ain't ready yet."
"Oui chere, Remy b' all set, but I got some ting for y', and Stormy, don' worry bout y'r clothes, wouldja y' take Sam down t' de truck, Logan knows de way, Rogue and me well be following on m' cycle." Remy said as he pulled Rogue back into his room.
"Well Samuel, I guess we shouldn't keep Logan waiting. Shall we?" Storm asked young Samuel as they proceeded to the garage to meet Logan.
"Miss Munroe, do ya know why Rogue is always so nice ta Remy, and yet so short with everyone else?" Sam asked in a very curious tone.
Storm smiled at this. "I honestly couldn't tell you Samuel, but I will tell you that maybe tonight if you watch them closely you may get some answers to those questions." Ororo said as she threw a backwards glance at Remy's door.
"Hey Mr. Logan, like what are you doing tonight." Kitty asked Logan who was sitting, very grumpy looking in his truck.
"I was suppose to be going to the tavern, but Gumbo convinced me to go to a barn dance. Sam overheard him and Stripes talking about it, and he wanted to go, but Gumbo wanted to take his bike, so he convinced me to come so I could drive Guthrie." Logan said quite miffed about the whole situation.
"Kitty lets go! I am not going to wait for you all day!" Scott called out to Kitty from his convertible where him, Jean, Kurt, and Jubilee were waiting. They were headed into to town to shop at the mall, and maybe a movie.
"Well have fun Mr. Logan, oh yeah I also heard around the mansion that Storm's your date for tonight…you old smooth talker you!" and before Logan could respond to that, Kitty was off and running towards Scott and the others. He let out a snort towards her comment just as Storm and Samuel walked up.
"We're ready Logan, I wish you would have told me of the change of plans, I would have dressed more accordingly." Ororo said as Sam climbed into the truck first, than she climbed in herself. "Remy said, he and Rogue would be along shortly."
"Figured as much, and you look fine 'Ro." With that Logan started the truck and they were off.
Meanwhile back in Remy's room, Remy had produced a package for Rogue and had given it to her. "Now b'fore y' open it chere, let m' tell y' I know it's not y'r style, but it's perfect for y'r attire t'night." Remy said grasping her hand, as she was about to open it.
Rogue smiled at Remy, not a sarcastic or fake smile, but a true genuine smile. "Swampy, yah really shouldn't hahve gotten meh anything, yah already tah kind tah meh." Remy finally let got of her hand and she opened the box. Inside was a beautiful silk bandana that she could tie around her neck that matched a beautiful feminine cowboy hat. She looked up at Remy as he took the bandana and tied it around her neck. His closeness made her cheeks flush, but she forced herself to stay as she was. "Ah really don't know what tah say Remy, there, well there just gorgeous." Rogue said a little sheepishly.
"I tried t' find some ding more gothic in nature, but Remy t'inks y' b' de first Gothic cow girl, no?" He smiled a true charming smile at her.
"Yah know Remy, yah really know how tah bring out thah southerner in meh." Rogue sighed happily as she adorned the cowboy hat. With that she stood; she grabbed his hand and started pulling him towards the door. "Now lets go, ah got and itch tah see if yah really know how tah dance like yah keep saying yah do." Rogue stated playfully as they made their way to the garage and got on Remy's bike. And with that, they were off in the same direction as Logan's truck.
"O.K. Keety, Jubilee and I vell be at the theater. Vhere vell you be, so ve can find you." Kurt asked Jean and Scott in the middle of the mall.
"Where just going to be doing some clothes shopping. Maybe check the Gap, Jean always takes hours in there." Scott said to Kurt, he also whispered the last part hoping that Jean would not hear him. Kurt tried to stifle a laugh.
"Like let's go Kurt, after the comment Scott just made, it may be safer if we're not witnesses to the like impending death of our fearless leader." Kitty whispered to Kurt then took off running. "When was Amanda suppose to meet us anyways." Could be heard as the three teenagers trailed off.
"So Jean, which store first?" Scott said in a very nervous manor. She just glared at him as she started to walk off. He trailed along behind her. Of course all this was not lost on our mutants secret followers.
Arclight tapped her wrist communicator. "Ok, the Grey Girl. And one of her friends has split from there other two companions. With any luck they'll split up also, and we can grab the girl while she's alone."
"Let's hope so, last thing we need is them having any leads on where to find us. Sinister figures they'll come looking, but if no one sees us, he doesn't think there will be a problem." Harpoon added from next to her. To anyone else in the mall that would look at these two, some would see a couple of college students. Maybe college sweet hearts, but to a select few, they would see two very dangerous, and sinister mutants.
In another store, in that mall two more figures that would also appear to be only a couple of college sweethearts sat they're waiting, with the appearance of browsing. "Arclight said they were headed this way." Riptide said as he pulled out a very revealing pair of lingerie.
"Riptide, you will never, ever see me in that. Face it, you are just not my type." Vertigo said as she rolled her eyes.
"What ever you say babe, if you're wearing this though, you would definitely be able to distract our targets companion." Riptide said while trying to hold up the revealing piece of clothing to her. Vertigo turned and smacked his hand.
Stop playing, I don't want to screw this up, you want to go back to Sinister and tell him that we screwed up because you can't control your hormones." Vertigo said as they watched Scott and Jean enter the store.
"Would you look at those two Logan? You'd hardly think they have any problems at all." Storm said while seated on a hay bale. "I honestly never saw this coming."
"I'll admit, if I didn't have my heightened senses like I do, I'd be ready to gut Gumbo. But when he's around her, I can feel his sincerity, and I can also tell Stripes likes him." Logan said, "Where's Cornbread?"
"Young Samuel would be over there." Storm pointed to a section of the dance floor, caught up with many kids his age, all line dancing. "It seems that pep talk that Remy gave him early on how to be charming worked." Storm smiled as Logan smirked.
"Yeah, that Gumbo, he is one smooth talking Cajun." Logan said remembering all the times they almost got into a very nasty bar fight, the young Cajun Charmer seemed to talk them right out of trouble.
"That all yah got Swampy!" Rogue said as she danced to the beat of the country tune. "Ah thought yah told meh ya'll were good!"
"Don' start with m' chere, it's been years since I done dis. Not since de bayou." Remy said as he increased his speed to the line dance. "Remy wishes he had a camera!"
Rogue shot him a look as he said that. He smiled playfully at her, and she spoke. "Now what wouldja yah need that for Swamp rat?"
"T' take a picture of y' mon chere, b' great for black mailing, non?" He smiled playfully at her, and she deepened her glare. The song ended, and a nice slow song started. Rogue was about to walk off the floor as Remy grasped her had and pulled her close to him. She was uncomfortable a little, that is until she looked up into his eyes. All that melted away, she wrapped her arms around his neck as he placed his hands on her waist they moved slowly to the music.
"Whachya thinking bout Remy?" Rogue asked as she stared helplessly into his eyes, allowing her body to move to the music. Remy shook himself out of the trance that he felt himself falling in. He sighed and pulled her a little bit closer.
"Well, petite…y' sure y' really wanna know what b' going through dis here Cajun's head." He smiled, but not his normal genuine smile. She could sense he was thinking something.
"Of course Remy, ya'll tha only one at tha mansion ah can talk tah…tell meh…unless it be something sick…" Rogue finished her sentence with a stern voice said, you better not be having inappropriate thoughts about me.
"Non, nothing like dat chere, Remy…I be just t'inking bout how much I've grown t' care f'r y' in de time I've known y'." Rogue honestly wasn't expecting that. She had always hoped she'd find someone who'd want to get close to her despite her powers, and recently that hoping had begun to include that Remy be that person. "Remy b' just t'inking how much I'd like t' kiss y' right now."
"Ah, ah would really like that tah. But…" tears began forming in her eyes, to silence what she was about to say, Remy lifted the silk bandana he had got from her over her mouth, and placed a small simple kiss upon it. He broke it after a couple seconds and wiped the tears from her cheeks with his own-gloved fingertips.
"Ma ange, I think, I think…..Je t'aime…" Remy said in a very low, very shy whisper. She pulled him close and put her mouth to his ear.
"Remy, ah…ah feel tha same. But we, ah'm not a normal girl, ah may never be able tah show yah how ah feel." Rogue said in a regretful whisper into his ear.
"Shhh, chere, Remy don' care…if y' feel de same way, we…we find a way, non?" Remy said as he took her face in her hands, and stared deeply into her eyes. She shook her head yes, and they resumed dancing, finishing off the beautiful song playing in the background.
"The mall, it was suppose to be a fun night, Jean and myself would do a little shopping, spend some much needed quality time together. I turned around for one second when this girl came up to talk to me. I'm a guy, even me Scott Summers notices a pretty lady. She started flirting; I remembered Jean and told her I was seeing someone. I turned back around and Jean was nowhere to be seen. I assumed she went to the dressing room. Seconds later I got a distress call in my head from Jean. It was cut off abruptly, like she was knocked unconscious, or her powers were cut off. I ran back to the dressing rooms, but all of a sudden I felt a horrible sense of nausea. I tried to keep running. I looked around and the other customers and store workers looked to be experiencing the same discomfort I was. I dropped to my knees right in front of the dressing room doors. I saw Jean; she was lying on the floor her eyes pleaing for help, my eyes went to her neck. There was a deep black color around her neck with a blinking red light in the shape of a diamond. It was the light that caught my attention. Pretty soon though I felt the world go black." Scott said in anger. He looked about the war Room at the mansion. In front of him sat the Professor, Wolverine, Storm, Beast, Gambit, Rogue, Shadowcat, and Nightcrawler. They were all dressed like him, in their uniforms.
"We also received the call from Jean, we were at the movies with Amanda and Jubilee. We came rushing to the store she like yelled in my mind. We were to late; Scott was unconscious just like everyone else in the store. I went to see if I could get the security tape, but it was gone. That's when the people started to wake up, so Kurt teleported us out. Then from his car we sent the call over the COM links, and here we all are." Kitty said with a tone of regret that they were not fast enough to save Jean. Kurt placed a hand on her shoulder, reassuring her they did all they could.
"So what's our first move Chuck?" Wolverine asked, he was furious that one of their own was kidnapped. "Who do we think orchestrated this…Magneto or Mystique?"
The Professor was about to speak up, when Gambit interrupted. "Non, neither of dose two." Everyone glanced at him questioningly he walked over to Kurt. "Kurt mon ami, take me t' my room quick, den port us back." Kurt looked towards the Professor and he nodded his head. BAMF! The room remained silent for the thirty seconds they were gone. BAMF! They returned in a flash of light, and a smell of sulfur and Brimstone. Remy dropped something on the table. He looked towards Scott. "Dat what y' saw around Jeanie's neck, Scottie?" Gambit asked with a voice filled with regret.
The black collar like object sat there on the table all eyes were on it. Scott shock his head yes and answered in the positive. "Gambit, is there something you know about what happened to Jean?" The Professor asked in a very calm voice. All eyes shifted to him.
"Oui…" Gambit began very nervously. "I…I know de man who made de collar y' see on de table. He probably b' de same man dat had Jeanie kidnapped. Gambit worked for him shortly after I left m' home back in Nawlins. Was having troubles; he said he could help me. I did a job for him; I broke Creed outta a government compound. Didn't know it was him Gambit be freeing. If I'd known who de man I was freeing was, I'd like t' t'ink I wouldn't have done it. But at de time I needed de man's help. De collar was m' reward for doing that part of de job. It, it negates mutants' powers. I needed mine negated. De man's name is Nathaniel Essex. Gambit learned later on, he better known as Mechant…errr Sinister, Monsieur Sinister."
"So you lead him to us! You lead him right to Jean. How many psychopaths have you worked for in the past? What the hell is wrong with you?" Scott erupted and stood furiously gazing at Gambit.
"Scott, you must calm yourself!" Storm scolded Scott furiously.
"Calm MYSELF! Your little friend led this…this Mr. Sinister right to Jean. How the hell do we know he isn't still working for him?" Scott yelled angrily. "He's a professional thief, he shares some secret history with Sabretooth, and he worked with Magneto, which ended up with some of us captured, now he has connections to some madman that captured Jean! Professor you need to just rip the information from his head!"
Everyone tried to calm Scott. Everyone was so focused on Scott's outrage that no one saw Remy's eyes burst with energy. No one except Rogue. Rogue stood up and Rushed to his side where he was braced against the table. All of a sudden the air seemed to crackle with power.
"Y' think y' know so much mon ami. Y' when y' power went haywire, when y' couldn't open y'r eyes b'cause of de beams. Y' tink dat was bad. I spent two months when Remy b' only just shy of fourteen getting m' power under control. Den about two years later it went haywire. Merde, every ting was bursting, I couldn't control it. Stuff was charging up at incredible speeds. Remy charged a truck in de time it takes t' charge a playing card. Even worse I had no control. PEOPLE died cause of m' Y' slap on a pair of glasses, every ting O.K. I had m' clothes charging, m' toothbrush. Hell once I charged m' bed when I was sleeping. I needed help, m' family banished m' didn't want t' but dey had t' b'cause I killed someone wit m' powers! Y' had life so easy! Y' got an orphanage, I got de streets! Y' got de institute and da Professor I got bad hommes! Hommes dat used me, dat manipulated m'" By now the entire room started to fill with energy. Remy's eyes glanced around. "Get everyone OUT! De power I can' control it!"
"What about they collar!" Beast shouted above the crackles of energy. "Isn't that why you have it!"
"NON! Did collar broken now, it don' work!" Everyone started to file out when Remy finally got all the power he accidentally charged into the room back into him, he projected to the Professor he needed Kurt to teleport him to the back yard. His emotions broke something in his mind that was slowly releasing power he couldn't control. He needed to release it. Kurt teleported in to see Remy clutching on the ground, his eyes shut tightly. Emotions swirling around in his head. The emotions of remembering Sinister, the fear of what was to come when the others found out the whole truth, the fear of what Sinister had in store for Jean. The pain of everything in his life that was associated with Sinister caused the barriers that he bartered a piece of his soul for, they cracked, and then opened. Kurt touched his shoulder and teleported him into the backyard.
The other X-men were their watching, all worried. Kurt teleported back to the assembled X-Men. "Remy, you have to get control, you need to focus, to calm yourself!" The air was crackling, the grass was glowing, the ground beneath their feet started to burn.
"I think it's to much power for him to control, he looks very agitated, he looks scared." Beast said as he looked at the man that knelt almost fifty yards away. "I do not know what we can do."
"I do." Rogue spoke up. Everyone turned to her. "Like when Jean lost control, there was to much power for her to get back under control, I can drain some. Maybe then he can focus, can start to pull himself together."
"Or you could suffer the same fate he is Stripes! It's to risky." Wolverine said with a growl.
"Well, like than what do we do? Take him out, you've seen his normal explosions, and they weren't anywhere near this big! If we don't try, it's gonna be like a…" Kitty was saying.
"Nuclear Bomb." Storm finished Kitty's sentence.
"Ya gotta let meh try Professah!" The Professor looked around, he knew there was no other way. If he could get into Remy's head he might have been able to help, but the boy's shields were too strong. This was the only way. The Professor looked back to Remy, the air around him crackling, the grass blaring white with kinetic energy. Such raw power, it was too much at once, they had no other choice.
"Nightcrawler, take her in, then get back here. Be prepared to teleport us as far away as you can if this doesn't work. Storm call for the New Mutants to evacuate as far away as they can." The Professor said sternly, but also with a bit of fright.
And so it was done, Nightcrawler dropped Rogue off, just a couple feet away, then he was back with the rest of the X-Men. Rogue looked down at Remy, she took one of her gloves off. She knelt in front of him and spoke.
"Remy, ah'm gonna try tah help yah. Just one touch, ah'm gonna try tah take some of yah power, we'll control this tah gether sugah." She reached forward with her hand. She was awestruck with the energy in the air, the energy in the ground. She never would have thought he had so much with in him.
"Non mon amour, not like dis." Remy looked up at her, she looked confused. "If we gonna touch, den we do it right...no?" Rogue got what he meant. He stood up the best he could and she did the same. He approached her; she laid her ungloved hand upon his chest. He placed his hands in her hair and tilted her head up towards his. They both slowly closed the gap between their lips as she wrapped her arms around his neck. The second their lips met, Remy's mind began to calm. All those emotions began to recede back upon themselves. The only emotion flowing through his mind right now was that of love, that of never wanting this moment to end. Rogue snaked her tongue into his mouth, and he gladly accepted it. Remy's mind began to focus. It focused on keeping this girl, his girl safe.
Rogue couldn't help but feel so happy that Remy lost control. If he hadn't she may never have been able to feel his lips pressed against her. His tongue gently massaging hers. His hands clutching the back of her head, not wanting her to let go. Her own hands clasping together tightly around his neck, never wanting to let him go. In those first few moments, before her power could kick on, all she could think of was how perfect this moment was.
The other X-Men looked on in awe. It wasn't just the sight of Gambit and Rogue clutching together in a tender, yet passionate embrace. The kinetic energy that was radiating out from Gambit was drawing back upon itself. It was dispersing with out the usual explosion. The air settled, the grass returned to its true un-charged color, and the ground, the ground began to return to normal temperature.
"Like Professor, shouldn't Gambit have passed out by now? I mean they've been like totally making out for a minute, and it seems Gambit's powers back under control, but their still locked at the lips." Kitty said very relieved, and confused.
"And judging by the way our young friends hands are running up and down her back side, I'd say he is still very conscious." Beast added to Kitty's statement.
BAMF! SKNICT! "OKAY GUMBO! Your powers under control…Let go of stripes!" Wolverine growled as Nightcrawler teleported them to where Gambit and Rogue were.
"Lips off mein shweister!" Kurt said as he pulled Gambit back.
"Ya'll still awake!" Rogue shrieked astounded. Gambit was also shocked, he noticed her ungloved hand and took it in his, and he raised it to his face and placed it on his cheek. By now everyone else had arrived to the spot the two young mutants were at.
Gambit waited for it, so did Rogue, but there was no sudden pull of emotions, memories, or life force. Just flesh on flesh contact. Rogue wrapped her arms around Gambit with tears flowing from her eyes. "How, how am ah able tah touch yah?"
"Remy don' know chere, and t' b' honest, Remy don' care."
"THAT'S JUST ALL GREAT! BUT WHAT ABOUT JEAN!" Cyclops exclaimed furiously.
"Scott maybe you should calm down, we don't need anyone else losing control again. We'll get to that, but first I need to talk to Gambit about what he knows. About his power, and this Mr. Sinister." The Professor said sternly to Scott.
And with that the X-Men returned to the mansion. Scott stomped off first furiously, followed by Logan, who kept a close eye on Cyclops, to make sure he calmed down. Storm wheeled the Professor towards the mansion, as Beast followed contemplating what just happened. Kitty pulled a very nosey and protective Kurt along quickly, keeping him away from the last two. Gambit and Rouge proceeded to the mansion, un-gloved hand in ungloved hand.
A/N Well there it is, Chapter 8. What will be the repercussions for this chapter? The rest of Gambit's secret, how in control of this power is he? Was it Gambit's power that made their kiss possible, or Rogue's? Will Scott ever calm down? Can Logan's claws keep to love-stricken teenagers off of each other? Will Kurt start to 'port everywhere Gambit and Rogue are? And what does Sinister have planned for Jean Grey? Does Gambit have greater power locked in him, or was Sinister wrong in chapter six when he said Gambit doesn't have the power to oppose him? Will all these questions be answered next chapter? I don't know…maybe. Anyways…hope you liked it, if you did/didn't let me know by reviewing.
