Disclaimer: Not mine, not mine, not mine!!!
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Blink. Fuzzy edges. Blink again. Still fuzzy. Voices from outside. Muffled. Hushed. Throat sore. Mouth dry. Try to sit up. Bad idea. The covers are soft. It's warm. How nice.
"Ms. Rogue!" the old Creole woman cried, "Dat chile don' need t' be travelin'. She still weak. You take her wit' you, she could relapse. She could even die! I beg you, Ms. Rogue, don' be takin' her wit' you. Let her stay a few more days, please!"
"You know just as well as Ah do, Miram, that it's not up t' me. If her Pappa wants her t' go, she's goin', end o' story. Now be quiet or you'll wake her."
Miram let out a heavy sigh, "I'm sorry Ms. Rogue, I know you don' have a say in anyt'in' dese chil'ren do any more dan I do, but even Remy gotta see dat dis not be good f' her."
Rogue gave a small smile, "He does, Miram, he really does. That's why he does it."
She snorted, "Tryin' t' toughen 'em up my britches! He jus' don' wanna admit he's wrong!"
"Shh, yoah gonna wake her up!" she hissed, "Now wrong or not, he's doin' what he thinks is best for 'em, an' as long as that's the case, Ah'm gonna support it. Now hush up, Ah can hear him comin'."
"How is she?" he asked from the door.
"She be fine f' now," Miram answered darkly, "but I have t' insist dat you not take her wit' you!"
Remy shook his head, "She comes wit' us."
"Remy," Rogue pleaded, "she really is in a bad state, this last one really knocked the wind outta her. She's really not fit t' travel."
"She'll be well enough if I ask her to."
"Remy, you really gotta stop that. That girl will follow you t' tha ends o' tha Earth if you ask her!"
"Don' you t'ink I know dat, chere? Don' you t'ink I know dat she'd take her own life if I asked? Don' you know how much dat scares me?"
Rogue wrapped her arms around her husband, tears in her eyes, "Ah know Remy, Ah know. It just ain't raht. Ah nevah woulda listened to mah daddy like that."
Remy lifted her head to look in her eyes, "Yo' pappa was also crazy, chere, no one woulda listened t' him."
Rogue laughed a little. He had a point, her daddy had been a few fries short of a happy meal. She was amazed that she didn't turn out the same way, especially after everything her granddaddy had done. She shook her head. Remy had his mind set, Lucretia was going to New York with them whether she liked it or not. And she really didn't like it.
"Chere," Remy started, "I know you don' like it, but you know she be de only one dat can do de job, non? She be fine."
"Damn straight!" a weak voice came from the next room. "When do we leave?" Lucretia asked. She was standing in the doorway, holding herself up with the frame.
"Cretia, honey, why don't you go lay back down for a little while. We've still got time befoah we leave."
"I can handle m'self mamman."
"Ah know you can, sweetie, but you don't wanna run outta strength raht when you need it, do you?"
Lucretia looked to her father who nodded. She nodded, showing that she understood and turned around to get back into bed. Rogue turned around and punched a hole in the nearest wall. She felt Remy's hands on her shoulders.
"I know chere, I'll try and talk t' her again."
Rogue gave out a deep sigh of frustration, "It just hurts that you gotta tell our daughter t' mind me, that's all."
"I know, I know, she'll get it t'rough dat tick skull o' hers one day."
"Ah hope so."
"Kurt, would ya stop pacin'? Yer makin' me nervous!"
"I am sorry Mein Freund, it is just that I have not seen them in quite some time."
"I know, me neither, Elf. Are y' sure you don't want to go meet them at the airport?"
"Nein, they said they had things to do before they came here and they would come here when they were through."
"Then they'll be here when they'll be here, now stop pacin'!"
Kurt laughed slightly. Logan had a point, no good would come of pacing. He would just have to sit and wait like the rest of the mansion. Tensions were high. It was the first time that the Lebeaus had stayed at the mansion since their exodus fifteen years ago. True, he had gone to see them at their New Orleans home as had many others, but this was much different. They would actually be in the house again. Add to that that he hadn't seen his niece and nephew in nearly two years because of their schooling and he was a nervous wreck. He sat down and Logan offered him a beer. He started to pull on the tab, but dropped it when he heard the door bell ring. Instead of running, he teleported straight to the door, cutting off Scott and Jean who were walking through the foyer. He opened it as wide as he could and smiled.
Both Gambit and Rogue waved their hands in front of their faces to wave away the stench of the sulfer and brimstone caused by Nightcrawler's 'port. "Geez," Rogue teased, "Ah'd think you'd be happy t' see us Kurt!"
Kurt laughed and gave his sister a huge hug, immediately following with the traditional 'I'm not gay' man hug for Remy.
"It is wonderful to see you again Rogue."
"An' you, Kurt," she smiled.
Kurt noticed that she had a twinge of the New Orleans Brooklyn mix in her voice. He liked it. "Come in, please," he said, suddenly remembering his manners. Then, he realized someone was missing, two someone's in fact.
"Where are Lucretia and Nicholas?"
"Dey're runnin' an errand fo' me. Dey'll be here soon," Remy responded as he pulled his suitcase into the mansion.
"I've got it," Jean replied, lifting the luggage easily from the porch and floating it upstairs. "You'll be in your old room in the teachers wing and Lucretia and Nicholas will be in the student dorms."
"Ah'd like Lucretia moved to a room closer t' us if that's ahraht," Rogue requested. "She just got ovah a bout o' the flu an' we'd feel bettah havin' her where we can keep an eye on her."
"So what kind of errand is it?" Scott asked suspiciously.
"Not'in' dey can' handle," Remy answered, narrowing his eyes. "Y' know you got quite a way o' makin' an homme feel right at home. Hadn' been but two minutes an' already I'm bein' criticized."
Logan had finally joined them, a crushed beer can in his hand. He walked over and gave Rogue a good squeeze and nodded to Gambit.
"They're not in any danger?" Jean asked returning.
"Lu's got a good head on her shoulder," Logan answered for them, "She'll be fine."
"T'anks, Logan."
"Anytime, Gumbo."
"Shit, shit, shit, shit, SHIT!!" Lucretia cursed as she dodged another bullet. This was not going well at all. She looked at her brother, "You ready?"
He nodded, nursing a deep gash in his leg. They were holed up behind an overturned couch in their target's living room. His guards had heard a scream and now they were in the middle of shoot out. Neither of them had guns, but they did have their powers, and like it or not, they had to use them. At least no one had seen their faces and they were careful not to leave fingerprints anywhere. Still, it had been risky. Lucretia eyed the window behind them. It would have to work. Maybe their attackers would even think they had died from the fall. It was twelve stories up after all. She grabbed her little brother by the shoulder of his jacket and forced the window to crack by reversing the gravity on the panes, causing them to push each other away. It wasn't much, but it was enough. She leaped out of the window with her brother and then lessened the pull of gravity on their bodies so that they all but floated to the ground. Nicky was limping slightly, but it didn't slow him down much thanks to Lucretia's abilities. He clutched their prize closely to his body. They had gone through a lot of trouble to get it and they weren't about to lose it that easily. She spotted their bike and climbed on, pulling Nicky on behind her. He wrapped his arms around her and held on for dear life. Lucretia was not one to drive carefully.
Scott, Kurt, Remy, Rogue, Logan, Jean, and Ororo were sitting quietly in the rec room, waiting for the two younger Lebeaus to return from their 'errand.' When Rogue and Remy had arrived, the sun was already starting to set, now it was pitch black outside and a storm was brewing. Remy seemed to be the only calm one.
"What kind of 'errand' did you send them on?" Scott asked.
"I asked dem t' pick sumt'in' up fo' me. I guess it was a bit harder t' find den I had t'ought."
Wer zu Lebzeit gut auf Erden
Wird nach dem Tod ein Engel werden
Den Blick gen Himmel fragst Du dann
Warum man sie nicht sehen kann
Lucretia looked in the rear view mirror and noticed a couple of suspicious looking cars behind them, "Damn! Dey followin' us!"
Nicky turned to look, "Shit."
"You watch yo' mouth boy," she grinned.
Nicky laughed, "I got 'em."
"Non, we bot' got 'em," she lifted a gloveless hand to her brother, still keeping balance on the bike. He gripped her hand and felt the surge between them. It was time to cause some pain.
Erst wenn die Wolken shlafen gehen
Kann man uns am Himmel sehen
Wir haben Anst und sind allein
A bullet shot past them. Nicky couldn't help but grin. That borrowed from strength from Lucretia really hit the spot. He reached in his jacket pocket and pulled out a hand full of ball bearings and charged them. He reached an arm around his sister's waist, placing his hand against her bare skin, using her powers to guide them through the late night New York traffic. Lucretia weaved in and out, making it hard for their pursuers to catch them, but not making it hard for Nicky to take them out.
Gottdamm weiß ich will kein Engel sein
He flicked one metal sphere after another, aiming for tires, windshields, anything to slow them or stop them. He couldn't help but enjoy it. He could feel his sister's adrenaline rush, her joy at the chase. Their mother always worried about them, but they really enjoyed it. Oh, they knew they weren't indestructible. Lucretia knew it better than anyone, but that was what added the thrill. The thought that they could screw up and get hurt. It kept them on their toes.
Sie leben hinterm Sonnenschein
Getrennt von uns unendlich weit
Sie müssen sich an Sterne krallen
Damit sie nicht von Himmel fallen
Lucretia focused on the road ahead of her, she could feel her brother's elation and shared it. She glanced briefly at the mirror to see that their shadows had vanished. She smiled. She looked back onto the road. A road block. A couple of the geniuses had apparently decided to meet them half way. She smiled. It was her turn now.
Erst wenn die Wolken shlafen gehen
Kann man uns am Himmel sehen
Wir haben Anst und sind allein
She skidded to a halt in front of the vehicle and blew a kiss to the driver. She then revved the engine and screeched down an adjacent street. She didn't really need to use her powers for this, she was an excellent driver. She had also seen to many action movies with crazy-ass stunts like the one she had just done. She glanced in the mirror again. Good she had lost them. She could hear the storm clouds gathering above her, hear the cracks of thunder in the distance. She also felt the warmth of her brother's blood flowing from his leg. She had to get him to the mansion fast. It started to rain. She cursed to herself silently. This was really not going well at all.
Gottdamm weiß ich will kein Engel sein
Remy looked at his watch. They were late, they must have run into some trouble. Secretly, he worried about his children's welfare, but he would never let on. His wife knew that he worried, but she would never tell.
Rogue tried to make conversation, "So how're tha twins?" she asked Jean and Scott.
"They're fine," Jean answered, noting that Scott was too busy sizing up Gambit, "they're proving to be really outstanding telepaths." She brushed a strand of red and gray hair from her face. "They'll be through with their high school education soon and then they'll go on to NYU."
Rogue raised an eyebrow, "They accepted 'em?"
"Yes, of course. Why wouldn't they be accepted to a university?"
"Well yes, but in tha U.S.?"
"I really don't understand what you mean, Rogue."
Gambit put a reassuring hand on his wife's arm, "Jus' drop it, chere. Dis be gettin' us no where."
Rogue let out a heavy sigh and turned and smiled at her husband. He had a way of stopping things before they got started.
"Is anyone hungry?" Kurt asked.
"Sounds like a plan, Elf," Logan said. He got up and moved to the kitchen.
"Is there anything that Lucretia and Nicholas like in particular?"
"They're teen-agers, Kurt, they'll eat anythin'," Rogue laughed.
Kurt smiled and followed Logan to the kitchen. The two could be heard taking out pots and pans and making the normal cooking noises.
Rogue turned back to Scott and Jean and smiled. It was an uncomfortable smile. Things had never been comfortable between them. Not since Lucretia had been kidnapped, and Rogue couldn't help but think that the Summers children had been spoiled by living with the X-men. She hated to admit it, but mutants with the X-men always got the best of everything. It just wasn't the place for her or her family anymore.
Professor Xavier entered the room. He was getting so old that he had been confined to a wheel chair again, but it didn't really seem to phase him.
"I am sorry I didn't not greet you earlier, but I was detained with a troublesome student."
"It's ahraht, Professor." Rogue stood and hugged him around the neck.
"It is good to have you back in the mansion, Rogue, Gambit," he said, nodding to each one.
"Ah'd like t' say the same, but circumstances bein' what they are…" she trailed off.
"What circumstances?" Scott asked.
"I will explain later," Xavier started to explain, but was interrupted by a loud bang and a crack of thunder. They all turned to the direction of the noise. Lucretia was standing in the foyer, Nicky leaning heavily on her for support, and they were both soaked from head to toe. Lightening flashed across the sky, illuminating their faces, giving them a frightful appearance. Almost as that of two demons come straight from hell.
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And here it is, the new story! I promise this one will be longer than the last one. I swear. I'm going to change the rating to 'R' next time for later chapters. Let's just say that the Lebeau children are not sweet little angels. The song is "Engel" by Rammstein and translates roughly to: "Whoever leads a good life on Earth will become an angel when they die. They look towards heaven and ask themselves why one can't see it. When the people go to sleep, one can see into heaven. We are scared and alone. Goddamn I know I don't want to be an Angel. They live behind the sunshine, separated infinitely far from us. They must claw through the stars so that they don't fall from heaven." I think that's it. If there are any mistakes in my translation, let me know. Now go review, or I won't post again!