Disclaimer: I do not own, nor am I making any money from, the X-Men
characters. Thank you to Corrinth for the loan of Ilehana Xavier. Blaze is,
always has been, and forever will be mine, so there!
A/N: Don't forget to review!
Scene 4
Madrid, Spain, five years previous...
The phone rang. Gambit answered it with his best Spanish "Hola." For a second there was no answer on the other end of the line, then a voice that was strangely familiar and eerily dangerous spoke in English.
"Ah, Monsieur le Beau. I wondered if you had had time to reconsider my offer over the last two weeks?"
"Non, Jacobi, I'se not reconsiderin' your offer." Gambit started to put the phone down on the crime lord.
"A shame, I don't like being rejected. In fact, as most people fear what I will have done to their loved ones if they do reject me, it's been a long while since I have been turned down." Jacobi didn't sound as upset as he made out to be; in reality he seemed to be enjoying himself. "Nobody likes it when an intelligent young man is under the sway of an ignorant and bad mannered wench. Fortunately for you, I will be removing that problem from your conscious shortly. I look forward to speaking to you again when you are more your own man, Remy."
"Wait!" Gambit shouted down the phone, dread filling his heart. "What you mean, you gonna remove my problem?"
"I mean, my dear Remy, that your little sidekick is right now walking into a trap here in front of me. In less than half an hour, she'll be dead. Then perhaps you will be more willing to talk to me. And if not, you know what fate awaits you too."
The line went dead. Gambit stopped breathing, thinking, just stood there. Jacobi was having Blaze assassinated. Now, today, Blaze was going to die. And other than knowing she too was in Madrid, he had no idea where she was.
In a frantic burst of activity, he attacked the phone, punching in an international number. Three rings before a bored sounding male voice answered.
"Ed? It Gambit. I need a favour. The last call into this phone, where'd it come from?" He couldn't keep the fear from his voice. He couldn't loose her, not now, not ever. Not when his heart told him they were just on the verge of something amazing...
"Spain." Replied bored Ed on the other end of the line, clicking away on a computer keyboard as he spoke. "Madrid. Bye."
"You gotta be more specific! Blaze'll die lest I get to her!"
"Was a mobile, but the transmitter is in the city centre. I'll need an hour if you want better than that... Hello? Gambit?"
The phone swung on the end of its cord, Gambit was already gone.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Blaze walked through the streets enjoying the sunshine and especially the vast variety of shops and boutiques. She hadn't bought anything, living out of a suitcase across the world it paid not to be an overzealous shopper. But it was always fun to window shop at least, and Europe was her favourite place to do just that.
There was a screech of tyres behind her in the busy plaza. Blaze turned to see what had happened, but the street was crowded with Saturday shoppers. She gave up and turned back to continue the way she had been walking. There in front of her was a man dressed in black baseball cap and dark glasses. He held a revolver to her head.
The hotwired motorbike slalomed through the crowds. People screamed and dived out of the way, shopping flying everywhere. Away ahead there was a sudden loud crack followed by a roar as a ball of fire emanated from the crowd. Gambit leaned far over the bike, urging it onwards as Blaze's fire diminished and died too quickly. Already sirens began to wail behind him. He had no time to lose.
From nowhere a rain of bullets began, falling from the rooftops in the direction of where Blaze lay next to the charred corpse of the man who had been hired to kill her. In a movement that he was unlikely to ever be able to repeat, Gambit pulled the bike sideways, scooping Blaze's limp form up from the road in less than a second. He didn't try and dodge the bullets aimed at them, trusting to luck as he accelerated that Jacobi's marksmen would miss.
When the sirens and guns had faded enough into the distance for Gambit to think he was safe, he ditched the bike, took Blaze and set off down a secluded side street. Eventually he stopped and heart pounding he put the girl down. There were faint signs of life in her yet; she stirred as he began to check her for bullet holes.
"What...what happened?" She asked with her voice rough and eyes closed tight against reality.
"Jacobi try and kill you, Chere. Thought he could make Gambit join him if you were dead." He sat back on his heels, confident that she was whole at least.
"Feels like he managed it..." Blaze groaned. "I must have used my powers... Did I kill anyone?" There was real fear in her voice as she came back to sensibility.
"You saved yourself, Petite. I couldn't ask for more."
For a moment they just sat there, holding each other in shock. How close had they come to Blaze being dead? It was Blaze who spoke first to break the silence.
"What now?" She whispered, her who body shaking after the exertions of using her untrained mutant power.
"We run." Was Gambit's only reply.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Xavier Mansion, present day...
"Whoa, this looks like fun. What's goin' on?" Logan had only gone in the kitchen to grab a soda and a quick snack. Instead he found his way to the fridge barred by a grumpy looking Blaze and a whole stack of vegetables.
"The caterers called about an hour ago. The van had an accident on the way out here, and the meals for the whole school are somewhere splattered all over a road. The Professor in his wisdom said we'd manage somehow. Turns out somehow is me slaving over a hot stove for the next, lets see, four hours..." Blaze wiped her brow with the back of her arm, kitchen knife in her hand.
"And before you ask, no you can't help." Ilehana told Wolverine as she kicked her heels sat on a spare portion of work surface. "I've already been told I'd be no use, and she hasn't time to train me up and feed everybody as well."
"That's not fair, Ilehana. You admitted yourself you know nothing about cooking, especially if it's not over an open fire." Blaze turned her back on her friends and continued chopping.
"Do you do requests?" Logan asked, squeezing past to open the fridge. "I could murder burger and fries."
"No, no! You Americans know nothing about food!" Kurt appeared in a cloud of smoke on top of a stool. "What we need is some nice wurst...yum."
"That doesn't even sound edible, Kurt." Logan popped the cap off the bottle with an adimantium claw. "What the heck is a wurst? Some kind of fish?"
"Sausage, wurst is sausage." Blaze filled in sounding exhausted already. How on earth had she got cornered into this mess? The door opened again suddenly, surprising Blaze so her hand slipped, sending the sharp knife cutting into her finger. Instinctively she put the bleeding digit in her mouth and went to get another knife, cursing under her breath.
"Everyone can relax, Gambit has returned." Came the familiar accent from the doorway.
"Good," Blaze snapped across everyone else's greetings. "There's a knife to your left, chopping board by the sink, so get chopping Cajun. Everyone else out now if you don't want to be roasted alive."
"All right, all right." Logan held up his hands in submission as Ilehana and Kurt made a hasty exit behind him. "Good luck, Gumbo, you're gonna need it." The door closed.
"You not pleased to see me, Petite?" Remy went to put his arms around Blaze, but she ducked out of his hug.
"I don't want to bleed on you," She replied, holding up her cut hand before ducking his hurt gaze and opening the nearest cupboard. "Where d'you think they hide the plasters around here?"
"Here, Chere." He grabbed her wrist, wrapping kitchen towel gently around the cut and pulling her to him as he did. His voice was soft as he asked "I glad to see you anyway..."
A/N: Don't forget to review!
Scene 4
Madrid, Spain, five years previous...
The phone rang. Gambit answered it with his best Spanish "Hola." For a second there was no answer on the other end of the line, then a voice that was strangely familiar and eerily dangerous spoke in English.
"Ah, Monsieur le Beau. I wondered if you had had time to reconsider my offer over the last two weeks?"
"Non, Jacobi, I'se not reconsiderin' your offer." Gambit started to put the phone down on the crime lord.
"A shame, I don't like being rejected. In fact, as most people fear what I will have done to their loved ones if they do reject me, it's been a long while since I have been turned down." Jacobi didn't sound as upset as he made out to be; in reality he seemed to be enjoying himself. "Nobody likes it when an intelligent young man is under the sway of an ignorant and bad mannered wench. Fortunately for you, I will be removing that problem from your conscious shortly. I look forward to speaking to you again when you are more your own man, Remy."
"Wait!" Gambit shouted down the phone, dread filling his heart. "What you mean, you gonna remove my problem?"
"I mean, my dear Remy, that your little sidekick is right now walking into a trap here in front of me. In less than half an hour, she'll be dead. Then perhaps you will be more willing to talk to me. And if not, you know what fate awaits you too."
The line went dead. Gambit stopped breathing, thinking, just stood there. Jacobi was having Blaze assassinated. Now, today, Blaze was going to die. And other than knowing she too was in Madrid, he had no idea where she was.
In a frantic burst of activity, he attacked the phone, punching in an international number. Three rings before a bored sounding male voice answered.
"Ed? It Gambit. I need a favour. The last call into this phone, where'd it come from?" He couldn't keep the fear from his voice. He couldn't loose her, not now, not ever. Not when his heart told him they were just on the verge of something amazing...
"Spain." Replied bored Ed on the other end of the line, clicking away on a computer keyboard as he spoke. "Madrid. Bye."
"You gotta be more specific! Blaze'll die lest I get to her!"
"Was a mobile, but the transmitter is in the city centre. I'll need an hour if you want better than that... Hello? Gambit?"
The phone swung on the end of its cord, Gambit was already gone.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Blaze walked through the streets enjoying the sunshine and especially the vast variety of shops and boutiques. She hadn't bought anything, living out of a suitcase across the world it paid not to be an overzealous shopper. But it was always fun to window shop at least, and Europe was her favourite place to do just that.
There was a screech of tyres behind her in the busy plaza. Blaze turned to see what had happened, but the street was crowded with Saturday shoppers. She gave up and turned back to continue the way she had been walking. There in front of her was a man dressed in black baseball cap and dark glasses. He held a revolver to her head.
The hotwired motorbike slalomed through the crowds. People screamed and dived out of the way, shopping flying everywhere. Away ahead there was a sudden loud crack followed by a roar as a ball of fire emanated from the crowd. Gambit leaned far over the bike, urging it onwards as Blaze's fire diminished and died too quickly. Already sirens began to wail behind him. He had no time to lose.
From nowhere a rain of bullets began, falling from the rooftops in the direction of where Blaze lay next to the charred corpse of the man who had been hired to kill her. In a movement that he was unlikely to ever be able to repeat, Gambit pulled the bike sideways, scooping Blaze's limp form up from the road in less than a second. He didn't try and dodge the bullets aimed at them, trusting to luck as he accelerated that Jacobi's marksmen would miss.
When the sirens and guns had faded enough into the distance for Gambit to think he was safe, he ditched the bike, took Blaze and set off down a secluded side street. Eventually he stopped and heart pounding he put the girl down. There were faint signs of life in her yet; she stirred as he began to check her for bullet holes.
"What...what happened?" She asked with her voice rough and eyes closed tight against reality.
"Jacobi try and kill you, Chere. Thought he could make Gambit join him if you were dead." He sat back on his heels, confident that she was whole at least.
"Feels like he managed it..." Blaze groaned. "I must have used my powers... Did I kill anyone?" There was real fear in her voice as she came back to sensibility.
"You saved yourself, Petite. I couldn't ask for more."
For a moment they just sat there, holding each other in shock. How close had they come to Blaze being dead? It was Blaze who spoke first to break the silence.
"What now?" She whispered, her who body shaking after the exertions of using her untrained mutant power.
"We run." Was Gambit's only reply.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Xavier Mansion, present day...
"Whoa, this looks like fun. What's goin' on?" Logan had only gone in the kitchen to grab a soda and a quick snack. Instead he found his way to the fridge barred by a grumpy looking Blaze and a whole stack of vegetables.
"The caterers called about an hour ago. The van had an accident on the way out here, and the meals for the whole school are somewhere splattered all over a road. The Professor in his wisdom said we'd manage somehow. Turns out somehow is me slaving over a hot stove for the next, lets see, four hours..." Blaze wiped her brow with the back of her arm, kitchen knife in her hand.
"And before you ask, no you can't help." Ilehana told Wolverine as she kicked her heels sat on a spare portion of work surface. "I've already been told I'd be no use, and she hasn't time to train me up and feed everybody as well."
"That's not fair, Ilehana. You admitted yourself you know nothing about cooking, especially if it's not over an open fire." Blaze turned her back on her friends and continued chopping.
"Do you do requests?" Logan asked, squeezing past to open the fridge. "I could murder burger and fries."
"No, no! You Americans know nothing about food!" Kurt appeared in a cloud of smoke on top of a stool. "What we need is some nice wurst...yum."
"That doesn't even sound edible, Kurt." Logan popped the cap off the bottle with an adimantium claw. "What the heck is a wurst? Some kind of fish?"
"Sausage, wurst is sausage." Blaze filled in sounding exhausted already. How on earth had she got cornered into this mess? The door opened again suddenly, surprising Blaze so her hand slipped, sending the sharp knife cutting into her finger. Instinctively she put the bleeding digit in her mouth and went to get another knife, cursing under her breath.
"Everyone can relax, Gambit has returned." Came the familiar accent from the doorway.
"Good," Blaze snapped across everyone else's greetings. "There's a knife to your left, chopping board by the sink, so get chopping Cajun. Everyone else out now if you don't want to be roasted alive."
"All right, all right." Logan held up his hands in submission as Ilehana and Kurt made a hasty exit behind him. "Good luck, Gumbo, you're gonna need it." The door closed.
"You not pleased to see me, Petite?" Remy went to put his arms around Blaze, but she ducked out of his hug.
"I don't want to bleed on you," She replied, holding up her cut hand before ducking his hurt gaze and opening the nearest cupboard. "Where d'you think they hide the plasters around here?"
"Here, Chere." He grabbed her wrist, wrapping kitchen towel gently around the cut and pulling her to him as he did. His voice was soft as he asked "I glad to see you anyway..."