"Maybe someone hired him to keep tabs on you. You've been out of circulation for a while, people are bound to get suspicious."

Wolverine considered the suggestion as he switched lanes. He and Rogue had been driving since they'd left the bar, and they still hadn't figured out who Gambit really was, or why he'd lied. Finally, he shook his head.

"Nah. No one would have bothered integrating with the X-Men just to get to me. It would have been all surveillance recordings and information relaying." He snuck a glance at her out of the corner of his eye. "What about your mother?"

Rogue slowly turned her head to look at him.

"You think Gambit . . . was mah mother?"

Wolverine could feel his ears turning pink, but he refused to back down.

"Why not? You know she was upset when you left with me."

Rogue stared at him. In her mind she replayed the scene in the bedroom between her and Gambit.

"That. Is. Disgusting," she said.

Wolverine scowled, but let it go. His ears were still burning and he couldn't help but wonder how it was that with a look, Rogue could make him feel embarrassed about what he felt had been a perfectly logical suggestion.

"Anyway," Rogue continued finally. "Mama would have used a female character, like Storm, to gain mah trust. She's never trusted men. Takin' the form of a man, especially after the conversation Ah had with her about you, would have been pointless, and she'd know that."

Wolverine nodded in grudging agreement.

"Then who is he? And what is he really doing up here?"

"He would have had to leave the mansion right after us to have gotten up here so quick," Rogue mused.

"He must have followed you," Wolverine muttered.

Rogue nodded. "But why? And why did he use that guy's name?"

"Jean-Paul Beaubier is a little much for it to have been a coincidence," Wolverine agreed.

"Still, the real Jean-Paul swore he had no idea who Gambit was," Rogue pointed out. She was silent for a moment.

Wolverine frowned. "Maybe they have a mutual friend. That wouldn't be too hard to find out," he sighed. He took one hand off the wheel to rub his eyes.

"You seem tired," Rogue commented.

"You know as well as I do that my healing factor keeps me from suffering any effects of sleep deprivation," Wolverine answered.

"Ah didn't mean physically," she said softly.

Wolverine looked at her out of the corner of his eye. "What did you mean?"

"Well, you've changed a lot lately. Ah mean, when Ah met you, you were a hired gun. You didn't give a shit about me."

Wolverine raised his eyebrows. "You SHOT me."

Rogue sniffed. "Yeah, but you didn't care."

"I beg to differ," Wolverine muttered.

Rogue glared at him. "Ah meant, you didn't care about me."

"Hey, I cared. I helped you meditate didn't I? Helped you relax?"

Rogue shook her head. "You just did that cause you were afraid Ah was gonna pass out on the job. It was your ass you were worried about, not mine."

"For your information, I cared a great deal for your ass," Wolverine said indignantly.

Rogue couldn't help but chuckle. Then she got serious. "What Ah was trying to get at, was that your life was simple back then. Then Ah came into the picture." Rogue looked down at her lap.

Wolverine reached over and took her hand in his, keeping his eyes on the road. "Then I met you and my life meant more than working for the highest bidder."

Rogue smiled, thankful for his reassurance. She continued.

"And now you're on the way to discovering your past. It's possible that whatever we find at Alkali Lake will make a huge difference in who you are and what you want. Who knows how that will change things."

For a while, Wolverine was silent. Finally, he pulled over to the side of the road. The road they were traveling on didn't have much traffic, so they had some semblance of privacy. Rogue watched him, not saying a word. When they'd come to a complete stop, Wolverine turned in his seat to look at her.

"Listen to me," he said seriously. "No matter happens, we're stayin' together. No matter who I was then, I know who I am now, and I want you in my life."

Tears shone in Rogue's eyes. "Ah've caused you so much pain. Ah'm nothin' but a liability. First Sabretooth, then Gambit, who knows what else Ah'll bring down on you."

"Stop thinking about yourself like that! You're a human being, not a liability. None of that was your fault, Rogue. Shit, if I hadn't brought you to Canada with me, Sabretooth never would have found you. He never would have . . ." he choked, unwilling to finish the sentence.

"That wasn't your fault," Rogue broke in sternly. "Don't you ever think that was your fault. It was a horrible experience, but Ah can handle it." She reached out and stroked a hand over his cheek. "An it's because of you Ah have that strength. Ya helped me change. Ah used to be just a lackey for mah mama."

Wolverine resisted the urge to contradict her. He knew it was harsh to think your own parent had used you like a human weapon, but he also knew that in Rogue's situation it had been true. There was no doubt in his mind that Mystique loved Rogue, but that didn't change anything.

Rogue seemed to notice his pause. "Ah know she loves me, Wolvie. But if it weren't for you, Ah never would have become mah own person."

Wolverine watched for a few moments without saying anything. Finally, he took a deep breath and looked her in the eye.

"Look, I'm no good with words, and there's nothing I can tell you that you don't already have floating around in your head. But you are your own person, and you would have found that out with or without me. I was attracted to you because you were strong and you knew how to get a job done." He rolled his eyes at himself. "And because when I saw that little bit of vulnerability in you it kinda brought out the animal in me."

Rogue was silent for a few minutes. Finally, she smiled. Leaning forward, she relished the curious look in Wolverine's eyes before leaning over to whisper in his ear.

"Anything else bring out the animal in you?"

Wolverine slowly dragged his eyes over her form. Without his seatbelt, there was nothing holding him back. Purposefully, he slid closer to Rogue. His hand slid over her stomach to curl around her hip, his other hand moving to lift her. Her mouth covered his, tongue sliding in to explore his mouth as her legs straddled his waist. She groaned as he arched his hips, pressing his growing erection between her legs.

"God, Logan," she moaned.

Wolverine slid his mouth in a hot path down her neck and chest, nuzzling her shirt up until he could take the tip of her breast into his mouth. Rogue's hands laced through his hair, pressing his head closer and reveling in the sensations he was creating. Suddenly, she pushed him away. Both of them were breathing heavy, and Wolverine looked at her, a question evident in his eyes.

"No time," she said breathlessly. She leaned in took his mouth with her own, her hands moving quickly to free him of his pants. Wolverine didn't need a bomb to fall on his head to take the hint. With a growl, he began tearing at her clothes. She worked with equal ferocity on removing his, her amber eyes almost glowing in her excitement. Soon they were both undressed, hands roaming over one another's body, mouths locked together. Rogue gasped as she felt Wolverine plunge into her, her body stretching to accommodate him. The slight pain excited her further, urging her to break their kiss and sink her teeth into his neck. Wolverine snarled and began pounding into her in earnest, his fingers leaving small bruises on her hips as he pulled her down to meet his thrusts. Rogue could feel him getting close. Reaching out a bare hand she opened the transfer for a split second. When he roared his release she went with him, the orgasm sweeping through both of their bodies.

For a few minutes they lay their, weakened bodies lying against one another. The bites on his neck and the bruises on her hips had already faded. Finally, they pulled apart. Rogue gave him one last long kiss before regretfully sliding off his lap. As they redressed themselves, an idea occurred to Rogue.

"Wolverine?"

"You wanna do it again? I thought you were worried about time," Wolverine smirked.

Rogue rolled her eyes. "Ah need a phone, genius." As Wolverine snickered, Rogue narrowed her eyes. Then she smiled. Slowly, she leaned over him, her whole body disappearing into the backseat as she searched for the tiny cell phone they'd brought along. Wriggling around a little she brushed her knee between Wolverine's thighs and was rewarded with a surprised grunt.

"Now now, Wolvie," she said sternly, feeling his hands move up her thigh. "We really don't have time."

Wolverine growled and was about to pull her back into his lap, when Rogue cried out in success, raising the cell phone in triumph.

* * *

Mystique's face was grim as she listened to her daughter on the phone. Mastermind watched her from her place on the couch. Something about Mystique's face suggested that something was bothering her.

"I will find out what I can, daughter. Keep this phone on you." She hung up the phone and turned to Mastermind. In a few minutes, she had caught the other woman up on everything Rogue had told her.

"Is something wrong?" Mastermind inquired.

Mystique looked at her uncertainly. "I don't wish to dwell on it . . . but I suspect Rogue is having sex with Wolverine."

Mastermind chuckled. "My love, you've known that since she came here to talk."

Mystique scowled. "Yes, but I did not expect her to call me directly after."

Mastermind refrained from asking how Mystique knew her daughter had just had sex. Instead, she turned to the matter at hand.

"What did Rogue want you to find out?"

Her question seemed to snap Mystique into action.

"Get on the phone. Find out everything you can about this man called Gambit," she said in her usual all-business tone.

Mastermind, who had risen off the couch to follow Mystique's request, froze in sudden realization. She slowly turned her head to face Mystique, an expression very much like fear etched across her face.

"Who?" she whispered.

Mystique looked at her sharply, alerted that something was wrong by the tone in her lover's voice.

"Gambit," she said slowly.

"Is his real name Remy LeBeau?" Mastermind asked hurriedly.

Mystique narrowed her eyes. "He claimed to be Jean-Paul Beaubier, but as it turns out he was lying." She thought for a moment. "Rogue says he has unusual eyes. Red on black."

Mastermind's eyes widened. "Dear God. No, it can't be," she whispered.

Mystique snapped to attention. "What is it?"

"London."

"What about London?"

Mastermind's eyes got a faraway look in them. "It was years ago. I was hired by a man called Archade. He wanted . . . he wanted me to frame someone for a series of murders."

Mystique rushed to sit next to Mastermind. "Martinique, tell me what happened."

"I didn't know. I didn't know what Arcade had really done. He hired me to use my powers to frame Wolverine and I agreed. I didn't find out what his motives really were until later. Then I found out he'd killed his own lover. He wanted me to use my powers to frame Wolverine because he had convinced himself Logan was the one who killed her - not himself. When I found out what he'd done I severed our deal. Wolverine and I met and came to terms with one another. Nothing more was said about it and then he left London."

"Martinique," Mystique said gently. "What does this have to do with Gambit?"

Martinique raised her eyes to meet those of her lovers. "One of the women who was killed was named Alexandra Davies . . ."

* * *

Rogue tucked the small phone into her cleavage. Wolverine watched her like a hawk, his hungry eyes following the phone's trail.

"Mama's gonna see what she can find out." She noticed Wolverine's gaze and smirked at him. She took a few minutes to slowly and deliberately straightened her shirt out and made a show of checking to make sure the outline of the tiny cell phone could not be seen.

Wolverine growled and tore his eyes away from her. He'd created a monster.

"Well, you might wanna take the opportunity to get some sleep. We've got a while to go before we get to Alkali Lake."

* * *

Aurora sighed happily as she slammed the door to her brother's apartment behind her. Flinging her purse onto the couch, she headed for the refrigerator. Her movements were already getting clumsy and she clinked several things together in an effort to remove the bottle of wine from its cool resting place. She removed a glass from the cupboard and was just attempting to line the mouth of the bottle up with the lip of the glass when she became aware of a presence behind her.

"Helping ourselves our we?" a sarcastic voice asked, right next to her ear.

Aurora shrieked and dropped the bottle of wine, which almost seemed to float back up to the counter as her brother used his superhuman speed to catch it before it hit the ground. Whipping around she glared into the stony face of her twin brother.

"Jean-Paul, you bastard! How many times have I warned you not to sneak up on me like that!"

Jean-Paul's eye twitched slightly. Slowly, he took a step forward, forcing Aurora to back up into the fridge.

"And how many times have I told you, dear sister, not to let yourself in to my apartment?" he asked quietly.

Aurora stared at him. In her slightly inebriated state, she hadn't noticed how irritated her brother was until just now. For the first time since she'd arrived, Aurora took the time to really look at her brother. As her eyes took in his bare chest and loose blue jeans, Aurora noticed that his zipper was undone and suddenly it dawned on her.

"Jean-Paul! Do you have a man in your room?!" Her eyes lit up as she reveled in her chance to torture her brother.

Jean-Paul glared at her, but kept his calm. "Just because you're not getting any, doesn't mean everyone has to go without."

Aurora pouted. "That was not nice."

Jean-Paul rolled his eyes. "Well, neither is trying to steal someone's identity. Cry me a river, then build a bridge and get over it."

"Someone tried to steal your identity?" Aurora asked. The alcohol was starting to leave her in all the excitement and her curiosity was piqued.

"Yeah, some demon-eyed bastard. Don't even get me started on his fashion sense," Jean-Paul muttered.

Aurora's eyes got a dreamy look in them. "I knew a man with eyes like a demon once. Red on black." She giggled. "They glowed while we were—"

In a flash of superhuman speed, Jean-Paul was in front of her, his hands grasping her shoulders and Aurora shrieked again.

"What did his eyes look like?!" he demanded.

"Dammit, Jean-Paul, I just asked you not to—"

"What is his name!" Jean-Paul snarled.

Aurora stopped complaining and looked into his eyes in confusion. "His name was Remy LeBeau. I think he called himself Gambit."

A slow smile slid across Jean-Paul's face.

"Leave," he said abruptly. Turning around, he began taking purposeful strides towards his bedroom door.

"But, Jean-Paul, I wanted—"

"Go!" he called back over his shoulder.

Stalking over to the couch, Aurora grabbed her purse and stormed out of the apartment, slamming the door behind her. In Jean-Paul's bedroom, there was a soft chuckle.

"I thought she'd never leave," Quicksilver commented. He frowned as Jean-Paul began getting dressed. "Where are you going?"

"She fucked him. She fucked the guy who used my name," Jean-Paul's voice was muffled as he pulled a shirt on over his head.

"Hmph, lucky guy," Quicksilver muttered.

Jean-Paul froze. Slowly, he pulled the shirt back over his head, letting it hang in his grip. For a long minute, he contemplated his naked companion. Quicksilver let the sheet slide down a little farther, and Jean-Paul sighed.

"All right," he gave in, dropping the shirt to the floor and unfastening his jeans. He smirked. "But we gotta make this quick. I'm going manhunting.

Author's Note: Sorry it's been so long since the last update. There didn't seem to be much interest in continuing the story. Let me know if you guys are still enjoying what we're doing. There's one more chapter and then an epilogue after this, so if we see a lot of interest, we'll have the next chapter up in about a week. Probably Wednesday.

Jenny & Kazi