It was th' worst place Ah'd ever seen.

There's no other way ta put it really. Somethin' in th' air. Wind through th' leaves sounded like a million people whisperin' at once an' th' moon castin' weird shadows on the sidewalk. It was quiet, but quiet like all the noise was bein' sucked down into th' house. It looked blind into th' street, but that blank face was reachin' for somethin'. Waitin'.

"This place is totally creepy," Kitty breathed.

"If ya want t' turn back now, love, there's nothing t' stop ya," John replied sweetly, earnin' a furious scowl from Kitty. Th' two of em' had been bickerin' ever since we'd left th' apartment.

"I'm not afraid," she insisted defiantly, pokin' her index finger into John's chest.

"Enough," Remy cut in. His voice wasn't particularly loud, but it sliced across both o' their conversations quick enough. "Rogue?" Ah knew what he was askin' without him havin' ta say it.

"Ya think these two can keep from killin' each other if we leave 'em for more than three seconds?" Faster than Ah would've thought possible, two pairs of eyes focused angrily on me. "Hey," Ah told 'em, "Ah just call things like Ah see 'em." Without waitin' for 'em ta answer, Ah scooped Remy into my arms an' headed for th' roof.

Remy pointed out where he'd seen th' cameras an' so we were careful ta keep our distance from 'em. Lucky thing that th' roof was flat. Narrow, but more than enough for me ta land on.

"Stay here, chère," Remy advised. "Better dat we don't move too much, just in case de sensors got a longer range dan I t'ought." My breath caught in my throat at that. Remy was off. He melted into th' shadows under th' trees. Ah saw dimly when he knelt an' eased himself over smoothly, grippin' th' edge o' th' roof. Not a sound but those whispers an' the squeak o' two branches rubbin' together somewhere. My heart beat faster an' Ah could feel sweat poolin' in my palms.

He was gone forever, seemed like.

But just as Ah was screwin' up my courage ta fly after him, he reappeared. Ah had ta hold myself back, resistin' th' urge ta fling my arms around his neck.

He laid his hand briefly against my cheek. Th' fingerless leather gloves he was wearin' felt cool on my skin, not like him at all.

"Dere's no wiring in de upper windows," he reported briskly. "Dat's de way we'll get in."

"Cameras?"

He shook his head, ran his hand back over his shockin' haircut. "Too dark. Couldn't see anyt'ing."

"Ah'll get Kitty an' John."

They were quiet when Ah reached 'em an' came without complaint. By th' time Ah got back, Remy'd jimmied th' window open. Sometimes it was easy ta forget where his real strengths lay. Or maybe it was just that Ah didn't want ta think about it too much. Ah know that sometimes our ideas o' what makes a moral person are too narrow. And Ah know that carin' what other people think is an exercise in uselessness 'cause they don't really think' o' you as often as you're afraid of anyhow, but at th' same time, Ah couldn't help carin'. Mebbe it's what bein' sixteen gets ya. If Ah had some fairy godmother, Ah'm pretty sure those little naggin' worries are what Ah'd wish away first. Like it or not, Remy was a thief an' Ah didn't want ta change that, even if Ah felt like it sometimes. It'd only make him less free, less himself than when he'd started out.

That gloved hand again. My mind had been wandrin' away an' it took me by surprise.

"Chère?"

"Ah'm okay."

"Let us go first, okay?" Without waitin' for a reply, Kitty grabbed hold o' John. "Why don't you, like, make yourself useful?"

"Light my fire, sweetheart," John shot back. He flipped his lighter into her hands an' she clicked it on, close enough ta his hair for him ta start back. John wiggled his fingertips an' suddenly he was playin' with a ball o' flame no bigger than one o' those big shooter marbles.

In th' light, Ah could see Kitty roll her eyes. "Please. Just watch out for cameras, okay?" They sank through th' roof.

Remy shook his head.

"Good thing there're so damn many fire jokes in th' world, right?"

"I've known him longer dan you. Dere're surprisingly few. John knows dem all." There was a happy annoyance in th' way he said it.

Neither Remy or John would ever admit it, but it was a real good thing that Kitty was there. The way she disrupted electrical systems was a hell of a lot subtler than th' electrostatic pulse generator we'd packed. Th' main problem was in th' power. The generator packed a helluva wallop an' probably would've taken out th' electrical systems in the surroundin' houses besides. Not that there was particularly much goin' on in th' neighborhood after hours, but all it would've taken was one overzealous lobbyist workin' late.

Ah never quite got used ta th' sight o' Kitty's phasin'. When her hand rose outta th' roof almost ta th' elbow, Remy just stared.

"Ya waitin' for th' fourth o' July?" Ah asked anxiously. "Grab her."

"Rather take de window route if it's de same t' you."

"Would ya two quit stalling already?" John demanded faintly. "She ain't gettin' any lighter." There was an outraged squeak an' Ah guessed that one o' Kitty's shoes had found a convenient part o' John's anatomy.

"For god's sake!" Remy caught hold o' Kitty's hand and disappeared through th' roof. By th' time Ah scooped up th' duffel bags an' flew through th' window, John, Kitty an' Remy were safely on th' floor. John was rubbin' his cheek pathetically.

"Oww. I think ya loosened a tooth."

"Baby."

He looked at her darkly. "There's nothin' childish about good dental hygiene." He waited for th' joke ta drop before continuin'. "We'd better get a move on, then. Meeting's not going ta last forever."

"Downstairs," Remy said.

"Fuse box?" Ah asked.

"Mebbe de basement. Didn't see one when I was here dis afternoon."

"Fantastic," Kitty drawled sarcastically. "There should only be, like, a million other cameras in the hallways."

"Non. De surveillance panel downstairs is only big enough for two screens, if dey're split four ways, dat's still only eight cameras. De alarm's more of a problem."

"Not much," Ah said, risin' slightly into th' air ta drive my point home.

"Here," John said, unzippin' one o' th' bags. "There should be a..." He trailed off, makin' a small, pleased noise instead. "Right, here it is." He was holdin' somethin' that looked like a pipe. "Camera," he said, bendin' a kink in th' tubing. He slid th' thing under th' door an hooked a small screen into th' end. "Heat sensing. Picks up machinery pretty damn good."

"Let me see," Kitty said, jockeyin' for position in front o' th' screen. "Is that this wall?" Without waitin' for John ta answer, she reached inside.

"Got it," John admitted grudgingly.

They deactivated all th' cameras on both floors that way, Kitty movin' slowly, reachin' in where John told her. Seemed like each second was draggin' over us, rough an' heavy, but in reality, it couldn't have been more than ten minutes all in all.

"Back dere," Remy whispered, raising a gloved finger toward th' shadows at th' back o' th' house.

We were all crowded on th' bottom step, careful not ta set foot on th' ground floor. John rummaged in th' second bag an' pulled out a canister, about th' size o' a small can o' spray paint. He pressed th' top an' a fine mist filled th' room. Kitty coughed a bit, mufflin' th' sound with th' back o' her hand. Remy's breathin' was heavy. Once th' mist settled near th' floor, we could see th' bright spider web o' lasers criscrossin' over each other. Th' spaces between 'em were so tight, Ah don't think there was space for a child's foot ta step.

"Here." Ah bent over, offerin' my back ta Remy. He clasped his arms around my neck an' Ah grabbed Kitty an' John with each o' my hands. "We're prayin' this stuff doesn't go back all th' way, right?"

"Hard as we can," Remy said humorlessly.

John tucked his legs up into his chest. He was only danglin' by one hand, usin' th' other ta hold th' fire in front of us. "Go slow, right?"

Kitty tucked her legs in. "Not too slow." In th' strange red light comin' from th' network o' lasers, Ah could see how sweat had streaked her cheeks. Ah bit my lip an' flew forward. Ah could feel John an' Kitty's hands shaking with fatigue inside mine, but Ah forced myself ta maintain a steady pace.

Luck was with us right then, that's all that Ah can really say. Ah always suspected th' Lady had somethin' of a crush on Remy, or mebbe it was more of a motherin' thing. Like she'd kissed him ta mark him when he was born an' had been watchin' close over him ever since then. He slid from my back an' set ta work on th' door. Ah'd seen him pick locks before, but somehow Ah never got tired o' watchin' it. Was like magic.

"Wires?" Remy asked, a pick clenched in his teeth.

Kitty dipped her index finger into th' door frame. "Not anymore."

John's light fluttered out. "Hey!" Remy protested.

John's hands wobbled an' it took him a little bit ta start up th' lighter again. He shaped a ball o' light larger than th' last one. It hovered in front o' his nose like a will o' th' wisp.

"Ready?" Without waitin' for anyone ta answer, Remy pushed th' door open an' th' darkness behind it came rushin' out ta meet us.

* * *

Dere was a minute on de stairway when I couldn't breathe. I've been t' dark places in my life, places dat were more dan dark. I've been out in de bayou at night wit' de benefit of a failed lantern. Dere was dat time when I was wedged inside de Pig's chimney like Santa. But at dat moment on those stairs I knew dat everyt'ing I'd experienced before was bright as day in comparison.

John's fire danced ahead of us. He kept making it bigger, but no matter how big it got, it always seemed like a fading pinprick against dat dark. It was a physical sensation -- walking in de folds of a never-ending velvet curtain -- it filled my nose and mouth until I felt like I was drowning inside it. De walls seemed t' narrow and I reached my hand out t' touch one, just t' show myself dat de notion was all in my head. Recoiled at de feeling. Whatever it was made of felt like ash under my fingers and flaked onto my skin. Hastily pulled my hand back, shaking it. De hairs on de back of my neck pricked.

"Somet'ing wicked," I murmured.

"What?" Rogue asked, her voice echoing faintly in de dark.

"Not'ing," I said quickly, wiping my hand on my pants.

"This place is totally weird," Kitty whispered. Almost like she was afraid of de echo. Not sure I would have blamed her if she was. Couldn't quite remember how big someplace had t' be t' produce an echo, how far apart de walls had t' be. But sure I knew dat de usual basement wasn't big enough by half.

"Somethin' wicked this way comes, eh?" John said, startling me.

"By the pricking of my thumbs," Kitty supplied.

"Stop it," Rogue ordered sternly. "There's no need ta encourage early heart attacks."

"How long have we been on this stupid staircase anyway?" Kitty demanded nervously. She kicked at one of de treads and stumbled, clutching hard onto John's arm. De light wobbled. Shadows beat like wings over our heads.

"Watch it, then!"

"It's not solid," Kitty protested. She bent over, scooping de material. "Look. It looks like charcoal or something." John brought de light close. De stuff in her hand was black wit' a greyish sheen. Kitty crushed it between her fingers and de particles drifted away into de dark.

"We cain't go back now," Rogue said, tossing a quick look over her shoulder.

"Why not?"

"Because Ah'm not sure where th' door went."

We snapped our heads around and she was right. We hadn't been walking dat long. Dere should've been a solid rectangle above us, shining bright in comparison t' de darkness where we were standing. It should've stood out like a fucking lighthouse.

"Merde," I whispered.

"Look, Ah can go back real quick. It's got ta be up there..."

"No!" I shouted. Instead of echoing like Rogue's voice had before, de sound fell flat and dull. Like de space was folding and expanding around de edges of what we could see. Only dat was impossible. "No one goes off alone." Dere was a long silence. "What is dis place, John?"

"Well how th' hell should I know? Not like they'd put 'secret evil basement' in the orientation materials."

"Shh!" Kitty cautioned. "What was that?"

"What was what?" John snapped.

Den we all heard it. De sound started quiet and low, like de noise of a distant subway train, but den it built into somet'ing dat crystallized into a growl before dying away. Went cold all over. Rogue's hand found my forearm and clamped down hard enough t' make me wince.

"We have ta keep movin'," she said weakly. "There's nothin' else ta do. So up or down?"

We looked up again. Still no door. John spread his fingers and his speck of light flared so dat we could see for an instant. Dere were only five steps t' de bottom.

"Fate, right?" John said glumly.

"Ya sure ya heard somethin' from down here?" Rogue asked me.

I nodded.

We moved forward.

It got colder. So cold dat we could see our breath smoking in de air. Dis was so much worse dan de New England winter I'd complained so bitterly about. It sunk into my bones and made my joints ache. Dere was a short hallway at de bottom of de stairs dat opened out into a room dat felt impossibly large. Wit'out waiting, John's shot his ball of light into de air, somet'ing like dropping a stone down a well just t' see how deep it is. We craned our necks and watched de light get smaller and smaller before winking out altogether.

"How far is your range?" Kitty asked, shaky.

"Better if I don't tell ya." John clicked de lighter and I let out a breath I didn't know I'd been holding t' see even dat small bit of fire. Wit'out speaking, we hurried forward, throwing ourselves through dat awful empty space as quickly as we could. Dere was another hallway on de opposite side and we plunged inside gratefully.

De place was twisted like part of a maze. We walked in silence and by de time we stopped, my face felt numb and raw from de cold and my feet hurt from de distance. De only saving grace was dat we'd been walking pretty much in a straight line, following de twists of de hallway. It would be easy enough t' find our way back. I was finding it hard t' remember why we'd come in de first place.

Dat growling noise glanced past my ears again, playful almost. I shuddered.

"You guys know Theseus?" Kitty breathed.

"As in Greek?" John asked. He sounded tired. Offhand, I wondered how long his strength would hold out. He'd once told me dat it took a fair amount of control and stamina t' make de fire do what he wanted, since fire's naturally chaotic.

"As in Crete. As in Minotaur," Kitty supplied grimly.

"Kitty," Rogue warned.

"But isn't that what this feels like?" she demanded. "Like all those men and women who went off to be killed inside the labyrinth."

"All in all, I'd rather be Theseus," John murmured.

"I'm not sure we get any kind of choice like that."

"Kitty, stop it!" Rogue insisted. Dere was somet'ing wild at de edge of her voice. "Just stop it! There's no maze an' there's no Minotaur an' there's no need ta..."

She was cut off by another growl dat rose t' a roar. It seemed t' go on forever. Felt like de walls were about t' shake down around our ears.

"Look!" Kitty's voice rose above de noise. Figure in de distance. It was glowing sickly, like a phosphorescent mushroom. "Hey!" she shouted, starting forward.

"Kitty!" Rogue snatched at de back of Kitty's shirt, but her fingers were too slow. She took off too.

"Girls got no sense!" John snorted, but den we were all running. John's light winked out and dat black velvet covered us. Felt like I was falling or floating or standing still. Anyt'ing can happen in de dark. De figure moved away from us. Reached out my hand as if dat might catch it or make it stay.

* * *

Dear lord, has it really been a month? Gah. Sorry. Anyhow, just to give credit where it's due, the fragmentary quote is from Macbeth, my favoritest Shakesperian tragedy, and the inspiration for the 'secret evil basement' is from House of Leaves, a truly creepy read.

ishandahalf: Sadly, that scene could be the last of the R/R-ness for awhile. Just 'cause they're not in the most romantic of places right now. But rest assured, I'll get back to the cute stuff that doesn't advance the plot one iota soon.

Lucky439: I don't think a month exactly counts as "soon". Again, I'm so, so sorry!

Tenshi Kanashii: I try to take certain suggestions into account, just as long as they're not too far from what I intend to do anyhow. Your concept of a shower scene is intriguing... ;)

Lace123: I think that's probably the reason I like Kitty too. The smart, peppy girl. I'm a bit like that myself and it's always been kind of a sore subject for me too.

Panther Nesmith: "Action" is always a loaded word to use with anything I write unfortunately. I feel like I don't write action terribly well, but I'm seriously trying over here! I'm also getting a kick out of setting this thing in my hometown because it's like giving a tour and I love playing tourguide (although as far as I know, there are no secret evil basements in DC whatsoever).

Neurotic Temptress: Can you believe I haven't seen X2 yet? That's how busy I've been lately. Sigh. And last week I would have definitely joined you on your perpetual lost mind search. I had a friend in town last weekend and she's all "Let's go to a movie!" and I'm all, "Yay! I haven't been to a movie in, like 2 months! X2!" but she wasn't feelin' it and so we saw "The Matrix" instead, which was kind of a snooze fest IMHO.

Carla & Eileen Blazer: Yay! (imagine me doing the happy squirmy puppy dance) I love hearing from new people! And I swear I'm not usually this bad with the updating and whatnot.

Flyby Stardancer: See my above comment about X2. I am hanging my head in shame here. I am a horribly lax X-fan. And about that, does anyone know when the new season of EVo starts? I hate how cartoon schedules are so frelling flexible (and by "flexible" I mean "utterly random and nonsensical").