Leigh's Fanfiction Archive Stormkeeper's Fanfiction Freedom Chapter 20
Freedom
By Stormkeeper
Chapter 20
Charles Xavier's hoverchair sat near one of the lakes on An'zhina. Despite the chilly day, he enjoyed being outdoors and experiencing the land on this moon. So far away from earth,' he mused. So far from the world I tried so hard to make a difference in.' Though it was still very early in the morning, Charles felt no fatigue. The healing ceremony of the previous evening had invigorated him. Somehow he knew his mind was on the road towards peace though his body still felt the fatigue.
His contemplation was interrupted when he sensed two of his students approaching. Of course the word "student" never fully encapsulated what they meant to him, but it would do for now.
"Hello, Professor," Jean's voice called
Charles turned and faced Jean and Scott. "You've decided to go on the next mission," he stated.
Scott smiled. "Whatever happened to not probing people's minds without their okay?" he asked, though he was not at all angry, and both Charles and Jean knew it. He voiced only his confusion at Charles's action.
"The thought was running so strongly through both of you that I sensed it right away," the Professor explained. "I know you both will do well and help make this mission a success."
"We will, Charles," Jean said, her voice soft but resolute.
"Make this one count." Xavier implored. "Make this one of the X-men's last such missions to earth."
Later that day, Cyclops called a meeting of the X-men. The conference room they had selected was nearly full with all of the members of the X-men present, along with the two other mutants who had been voted as representatives to the rest of the An'zhinans, Erica and Yunfei.
"And so that's what we've decided," Cyclops was telling the group. "I think it's a win for everyone---the Professor can continue getting the rest he needs, and Jean will use her powers to shift the situation on earth."
In Storm's mind, some of the placidity she had gained from the healing ceremony last night started to dissolve. "I am glad to hear of this plan," she said, her voice loud and strong, easily carrying through the filled room. "I agree that it has the potential to enact quite a bit of change on earth. However," she began again, and those who knew her well could've detected from the look on her face that a however' was on its way from the second she opened her mouth, "I am both surprised and angered that I did not know of this decision. I am co-leader of the X-men and it distresses me that this was not discussed with me."
A low rumble could be heard throughout the room. Was Cyclops trying to regress to the days when he was the group's sole field leader with Storm clearly the second-in-command?
Or was Storm overreacting? If so, that was quite unlike her. There had been minor friction between the two leaders in the past….was it resurfacing?
The Professor spoke, "Storm, I assure you that no offense was intended----either from Cyclops and Jean or myself. We reached this decision about an hour or two ago. We wanted to let everyone know at once."
Cyclops was confused. Why was she acting as if she'd been trespassed against? Earlier that morning, the three of them could have first called a meeting of the field commanders and discussed the decision, but it would have been very inefficient and bureaucratic. Besides, what was there to discuss and debate? He and Jean were going, and that was that.
"We weren't trying to keep anything from you," Jean said, desperately hoping Storm would understand. "Scott and I only began discussing this in earnest a few days ago."
Storm nodded. "I see. Well, whatever the case, as I said I am glad you will be accompanying us on our next mission." Her voice carried a hint of finality and she was alright with leaving it at that for now.
"I think this mission can really make a difference," the Professor said, "as Scott said. My hope is that enough minds can be changed to make this one of the last missions to earth."
"So when we gonna leave?" Rogue asked.
Beast and the Professor exchanged a look. Hank then held Panda's hand and said to the group, looking at her, "Our wedding is scheduled for Saturday. Five days from now. Perhaps we can leave shortly after that."
"What about Monday?" Storm suggested. "A week from today. If I've been keeping track correctly, it would mean the total amount of time we've spent here between missions was just less than four weeks."
"People sure can't call us slackers then," Bobby said. "Four weeks isn't an excessive amount of time or anything, and we needed at least that to recover."
Many nodded their heads at his words. Bobby's teammates were glad to hear him speaking out in meetings and looking more engaged in their happenings. Northstar was present at this meeting too, the first one he'd attended since their return from the mission. The rest of the group was glad to see them both apparently doing much better.
"Between now and Monday," Cyclops said, addressing the whole group, "please decide whether or not you will be joining us on the mission. We won't need as full of a crew as usual since we're not beaming to the surface and won't be engaging in hand-to-hand combat with any FOH soldiers."
"Though it still would be good to have a strong, full team," Storm said. "We shall take many precautions but still….we can never know exactly what to expect."
"This next mission will be a success," the Professor said. "I wish that I could join you, but it is better that I remain here. I know you will not fail."
Shortly after the meeting, Jubilee and Storm were taking a walk with Jubilee's daughter Aurora. Rory wanted to hold "Aunt Storm's" hand, but Storm was too tall to walk while holding the hand of the young child. She reached for the girl and scooped her up in her arms. They walked on one of the dirt trails astride the heavily forested area.
"I'm going on that mission," Jubilee stated. "I'm an X-man. And if it's safe enough for Jean and Scott to go and bring their kids, then it's safe enough for her too," she said, gesturing at Rory. At just over two years old, Aurora resembled her mother in so many ways----she had Jubilee's youthful, sprightly personality and bore a physical resemblance to her as well. Whatever her exact mutation was, unlike that of Charlotte, it had yet to manifest itself.
"You might be right," Storm said.
"I mean, I went on the X-men's second-ever trip to earth. And----" Jubilee abruptly stopped herself. "I was just about to say and everything turned out okay then'….but that was the mission where Wolvie, Bobby, and Gambit were captured and taken to that mining colony. We're so lucky we got them back safe."
"It is truly amazing the number of times we X-men have escaped death," Storm mused. She then almost wished to retract those words. Peter, obviously, had not escaped last time. She changed the topic, "You're certain of this decision?"
"Yes," Jubilee said firmly. "Besides, Rory would never forgive me if she and Charlotte were to be separated. They play together all the time."
The three reached a bench which sat aside the walking trail and decided to take a break there. They sat down, and Jubilee reached inside the pack she carried, taking out a juice box for Rory. "Ju ju," the toddler gestured, eagerly awaiting her orange juice.
"Here you go, sweetie-pie," Jubilee said, holding Rory in her lap and then bringing the girl's juice box to her lips. Rory took the juice and drank.
Meanwhile, Wolverine had been enjoying some alone time inside the depths of the forest. He heard and then smelt the three approaching. Not wanting to be disturbed, Wolverine moved further inside the thick of the trees. He was out of visual range, but his enhanced hearing allowed him to hear Storm and Jubilee crystal clear. Though he did not want to eavesdrop, he also found himself interested in listening to what these two beloved women would say.
"I will miss some of the people I've been working with here," Jubilee said.
"I hear you are doing an excellent job as a trainer. And as a counselor," Storm told her. "Everyone---Jean, Banshee, Moira, Cyclops---are all very pleased with the work you have been doing."
Jubilee glowed at the compliment. "Well, we'll only be gone for 10 weeks. That time will go by fast. And with the Professor staying here, I'm sure he and Banshee and Moira can manage to keep the place running without Cyke, Jean and me," Jubilee said the last part half-jokingly; she and Storm certainly knew Xavier and the others would do just fine. "Besides, I could really use some time with the X-men and away from here."
Storm looked at her. "Is it because of Lisman?" she asked.
"Yeah, partially" Jubilee said, her voice still seared with the anger and disappointment. "I don't know why with over 320 people living here, I keep running into him and Siryn holding hands or making out in public all the time. I swear they're doing it to piss me off! Just the other day, we were in a class that Cyclops and I were leading and there were the two of them, totally making out in the back of the room! Siryn is on his lap and they're slobbering all over each other. And Cyke does nothing. What was I supposed to do??"
"I'm sorry, Jubilee," Storm said. "How awkward it must have been for you. Truly Lisman did not deserve you."
Jubilee shook her head. "Yeah and if he ever comes crawling back to me on his hands and knees, I'll tell him where he can go!"
"Good for you!" Storm said, encouragingly.
At that point, Wolverine decided to give Jubilee and Storm their privacy and he retreated further into the forest, now out of earshot. He wanted to hear no more of their conversation.
Jubilee had changed the subject. "I want to learn how to play the flute as well as you. I think it's incredible how well you play."
"Dani Moonstar is a great teacher. I'm sure if you ask her, she'll teach you. During the weeks to and from earth, you will have plenty of time, too."
Jubilee shook her head. "That Dani seems pretty amazing. I've been talking to her at lunch and dinner, and after training sessions a bit."
"What's your perception of her, in terms of her serving as an X-man?"
Jubilee glowed with pride just over the fact that Storm asked this opinion of her. So used to being treated as a child, Jubilee relished the times she was treated as a team member and was asked for her opinion. Storm noticed Jubilee's eyes shine a bit and a hint of color appear on the young woman's cheeks; she knew her question had had the desired effect.
"I think she'll be great. Her mutation is really powerful. She's not an experienced fighter but she seems to be learning well," Jubilee said, trying to sound professional yet still like herself too. "And given the nature of her powers, she probably doesn't need as much hand-to-hand fighting skills since it's like she can work from some distance."
"I agree," Storm said.
"You know," Jubilee began, her voice now sounding contemplative, "she said one thing that made me….made me think. I was asking her one day about her experience at the FOH camps. I brought it up 'cause she seemed to be like the least traumatized camp survivor we've seen, I think. She just shrugged and said she was at a camp for a few weeks and that she's basically okay. I asked her if she wanted to talk or anything but she brushed it off."
"Everyone reacts differently to such an event. I think Moonstar uses her music to help her. Most cultures do accept talking about the pain as a way to recover, but it is not for everyone."
"I know, I know. But…ya see, I feel bad about something. Like, after what the soldiers did to me---to us---I was practically comatose for days. I couldn't function. And we were tortured by them for only a few days." She then paused and wryly repeated, "'Only.' Like it made it any worse that it was 'only' for four days. They felt more like a month." She paused and continued, "But Dani was there for a few weeks, not days, and she's….she's more or less okay. She didn't go through a stage like I did."
"Jubilee," Storm began, "you are not feeling embarrassed that it took you longer to recover than it took her, are you?"
Since Aurora was finished drinking, Jubilee packed up the girl's drink cup and wiped her face with a tissue before she answered Storm. "I dunno. I guess a little," she admitted.
Storm reached over and put an arm around Jubilee. "It is not a sign of weakness in you, Jubilee," she said firmly. "No one would look at what happened and think that you were weaker for it."
"Really?" Jubilee asked.
"I am certain of it. And I know you are a strong woman, a mature woman. What we lived through was awful enough----please don't feel bad about the method or the time it took for you to recover. As I said, we are all different and everyone heals differently. Your mind shut down for a bit during what happened and that was its coping mechanism to get you to survive the experience. We each cope and survive differently. You survived it and are stronger now----that's what counts. The amount of time it took for you to recover is irrelevant."
Jubilee raised her head and looked at Storm. "What about you, Storm? You're always taking care of everyone else. How do you heal?"
Storm somehow knew what Jubilee was alluding to. "I pray to the Goddess. She helps me. The healing ceremonies the four of us held helped a great deal also, as does working with the camp survivors and aiding them." Storm paused. "Did you know that FOH raped me again this last time we were prisoners?"
"Yes," Jubilee acknowledged. Storm had not told her---nor anyone, really---of what had occurred. "I hope you don't think I'm like gossiping or anything," Jubilee quickly added. "Rory and I were having lunch with Rogue and Gambit one day and I asked them for more details on your last mission. They mentioned it. Rogue didn't think you'd have a problem with her saying so, since we all agreed it wasn't anything to be embarrassed about. And they were concerned because they said you never seemed to talk about it with anyone, even though they said they'd both asked you several times."
Storm smiled. "I am not at all angry at you for bringing this up," she said truthfully. "As you, and Rogue and Gambit said, I do not mind others knowing what happened since I did not do anything wrong." Her voice was steady and calm as always.
"That's good." Jubilee said. "So, like, you know you could talk to me or Rogue or anyone if you needed to?"
"Of course I know," Storm said warmly. "And I thank you for the offer. There might come the day when I take you up on your offer."
Jubilee nodded and smiled, but she doubted that day would ever really surface.
Rogue wouldn't call it snoring. Not exactly. Gambit occasionally made some sort of noise when he slept…it was perhaps somewhere between a wheeze and a light snore. Rogue usually found it adorable.
"If it ever bother you, chere," he had said a long time ago, when they had first begun to share a bed, "jus' turn Gambit over. Dat usually enough to get me to stop----at leas' dat's what I been told. Your strength be a good t'ing so you have no trouble turnin' me."
This night, however, she'd turned him once already but a new round of snoring had ensued. Rogue heard a lot of it that night because she couldn't seem to make herself fall asleep. Sleep generally wasn't a problem for her but tonight was an exception. All of the gentle and sedate feelings she had taken away from Shaman's healing ceremony two days ago, however, were gone now.
Why am I obsessing over this?' she asked herself. What does it matter? It's all in the past now anyway. I just need to get over it.' She repeated this to herself several times yet the thought that was eating away at her kept returning. She did not deem it serious enough to bother Storm at this hour and she wasn't really in what she'd term serious emotional distress though. So Rogue kept telling herself she could handle it and tried to just make herself fall asleep.
Another indeterminate amount of time passed and she was no closer to sleep. Rogue glanced at the clock and then decided to take advantage of something she could do on An'zhina but not on board Freedom. She rose from the bed, wrapped Gambit's worn but cozy duster around her, opened the window and flew off.
It was quite cold this time of year on An'zhina but tolerable to Rogue. The wind rushing her face, her hair flowing, she adored the thrill she got from flying in open space. Flying around the gym on board Freedom didn't quite compare. She inhaled and detected Gambit's scent lingering on the duster she wore. With her mind feeling more clear now, Rogue could think.
'You're bein' awful childish, girl,' she told herself. You gotta let bygones by bygones. That's kinda what Storm would tell ya.'
The negative feeling had started earlier that same evening. She and Gambit had finished making love, and were cuddling together. Then Rogue had unthinkingly asked a question. "Where didja ever learn to be so incredibly good at this, sugar?"
Gambit had chuckled, his ego stoked. He knew Rogue enjoyed their lovemaking ---she was usually quite vocal----but it never hurt to be told he was good too. However, just as Rogue had unthinkingly asked her question, Gambit's reply had been equally heedless. "Lots of experience, chere," he'd said, smiling. However, the instant the words were out of his mouth, he had regretted them.
"How much experience, Remy?" Rogue had asked, feigning mere curiosity.
Shit,' Gambit had thought to himself. He knew she hated to hear about his past loves. "A fair amount," he muttered, his eyes not meeting hers.
"Well, how much?" Rogue had pursued, attempting to put a lighthearted smile in her voice. Gambit had continued to answer with vagueness, and Rogue continued to try to pretend the matter was of no import to her and that it was only curiosity.
"If you just curious, can't we jus' leave it alone?" he had asked, his patience thinning and the heavenly mood their lovemaking created now dissipated. Gambit put a lot of energy and passion into sex and generally wanted to spoon with Rogue and fall asleep afterwards. He was exhausted and wanted to get some rest, not face an inquisition about things he did before he ever met her.
"I just want to know," Rogue insisted. "I got a bee in my bonnet about this and I gotta know. What's the big secret?? I know you had lots of women but I just wanna know like how many is 'a lot.'" Upon receiving no sufficient answer, Rogue then attempted to pin him down to a range. "Okay, tell me when I get the numbers of your past women within 20, okay?" Without waiting for an affirmative, she went ahead, "Twenty or under? Twenty to forty? Forty to sixty? Sixty to---"
"Chere, Gambit not gonna answer, okay?!" he stated, coming off more harsh than he'd intended.
"Why not??" she'd asked, her voice pleading. She wasn't angry--- just, for an unknown reason, seized with a desire to get this question answered. "C'mon, Remy, just answer the question! I just wanna know. I told you all this stuff about my past. I just wanna know bout yours too."
Gambit sighed. "If I tell you, you not gonna get down on me bout dis, okay?" he asked.
Rogue smiled, knowing she'd won. "I promise. It doesn't matter to me."
"Okay," a very tired Gambit said, giving in. "We be talkin' probably somewhere between 60 and 100."
So Rogue had gotten the answer she'd demanded and now she didn't like it one bit. As she flew around An'zhina that night, Gambit sound asleep, several thoughts swirled around her mind. Where'd he even get time for 100 different women??' And the thought that reoccurred over and over, 'Does this mean someday he's gonna cheat on me?' Now that Rogue had recalled most of her hidden childhood, random memories would spring forward from her subconscious at times. She recalled her divorced Aunt (with whom she lived for a time after her mother passed away) saying things like, "If he's got legs, he's gonna cheat on ya."
The negative thoughts continued their rampage through Rogue's mind. At some point, the cold air started to get to her and, bored with flying for now, she longed for the warmth of her bed. She flew back inside and snuggled next to Remy, with both comforting and disturbing thoughts in her head.
Hank and Panda's wedding was approaching rapidly, as was the Monday we X-men would depart for our next mission to earth. Jean-Paul and I had decided to go on the mission, as had Jeanne-Marie. We felt we had to and we wanted to. We were all X-men. An'zhina was beautiful and all but if we were needed on a mission, it was our duty to be there. Whatever we could do to help change earth.
On this particular day, just a few days before the wedding, we actually had rain on An'zhina, along with one of the coldest and windiest days I'd ever seen on this gorgeous moon. Very seldom did a day pass without the sun making an appearance, but today was one of those days. I'm sure that Storm would've intervened had the wind turned hazardous, but we were in no danger. It was just not a day that most people wanted to hang out in the outdoors much. During the midday, Jean-Paul and I were working out in the gym, enjoying all the comforts of being indoors.
Things with Jean-Paul were continuing to get much, much better. He was back to being himself again….in some ways he maybe was a bit better than he had been before, even. We were very close. We talked more and we also slept in the same bed. On this particular day, though, he cut his workout short to go spend some time flying with his sister. They wanted to do another aerial tour of An'zhina before the next mission. They could easily deal with the wind and said the rain didn't bother them much. So Jean-Paul gave me a quick kiss on the mouth before departing the gym. I remained, continuing to exercise.
I was lifting weights. I knew I'd never be as brawny as most of the other X-men and certainly not to the extent Jean-Paul was but I figured that I could try, right? I certainly had way more definition than I ever had before in my life. There were a few treadmills not far from where I was working out. I looked up at one point and noticed that my favorite person was now walking on one of the treadmills. Todd.
After not long, Todd struck up a conversation with the guy on the treadmill next to him. I don't recall the guy's name; he was one of the Chinese ones. (There were over 300 people in addition to the X-men on An'zhina and I just didn't have the time to get to know each one or remember all the names. Besides, maybe I was not being sociable but I tended to spend most of my time with Jean-Paul and Jeanne-Marie, Jubilee and her daughter, Moonstar, Hank and Panda, and Rogue and Gambit. I had other friends but these were my closest ones.)
Anyway, I didn't hear most of Todd's conversation with the guy. From what I could tell, it mostly consisted of Todd talking and the other guy muttering words of agreement. However, Todd made sure he said one part loud and clear; the words were spoken at a much higher decibel than any of his other sentences had been. He said, "You know, I'm still not crazy about being a mutant, but it's okay. I've come to accept it and I tell myself that things could always be worse. You know, at least I'm no goddamned faggot." He then went on to loudly tell a gay joke. The joke was gross and nasty, and other guy laughed.
I froze when I heard all of that, putting down my weights. I was so angry. I contemplated doing a number of things, like throwing my weights at Todd, practicing my karate on him, or using my powers and turning him into a frozen dinner. But I then told myself those things would just result in another mediation---and violence wasn't the right way to solve it anyway. Next I considered going up to him and talking about what he said. But then a wave of fear washed over me. No….no, it wasn't fear. I guess it was shame. I felt like I was taken back to being a fifteen year old on the playground, hearing all the other guys insult each other by calling them "faggot" and "homo" as I felt such intense self-hatred. I'm supposed to be over that by now,' I told myself. By the time I was done debating with myself on what to do, I turned towards the treadmills and saw that Todd was gone.
I heard someone approach me and I turned to face them. Suddenly, both Storm and Wolverine were before me. "Is he bothering you?" Storm asked.
They had been working out separately but not far from me. With Wolverine's enhanced hearing, I'm sure he had easily heard Todd. And everyone knew about the situation with Todd, Jean-Paul and I. The rumor mill had been fully functioning since the mediation months ago (and since well before then, too.)
"Well, n-no. I mean, not really. Well, kinda maybe." Okay, that was lame.
"Which is it?" Wolverine asked bluntly. He didn't look pleased but I thought—and hoped---his ticked-off look was because of Todd. I sure couldn't think of anything I'd done to deserve it and deduced it had to have been because of Todd.
I composed myself and shrugged. "Todd's been doing and saying little things like that ever since he knew Northstar and I were gay. I don't know what to do. If I tell Jean-Paul, he'll just go and beat the shit out of him and we'll wind up in another mediation. I can't talk to Todd himself because I don't think there's any reasoning with him on this----besides, he'll scream in fear if I approach him. He does little stuff like that all the time----I guess to provoke me. I'm not going to take the bait."
Wolverine said, "Look, if he ever gets to be a problem, let us know."
Storm nodded and reinforced with Wolverine said. I thanked them and then we each went back to what we'd been doing.
I decided not to share this incident with Jean-Paul. He had enough on his mind. Besides, what I'd told Storm and Wolverine was accurate. I'm sure he would've found a way to enact revenge on Todd, a way that surely would have gotten both of them in trouble. I wanted Jean-Paul to stay focussed on the positive and on recovering.
After the incident with Bobby and Todd in the gym, Storm and Wolverine turned and found themselves facing each other. Bobby had gone back over towards the weights he was lifting. It had been mere coincidence that Storm and Wolverine had ended up working out near each other that day; Wolverine had been surprised when he'd caught her scent entering the gym. And now, standing before her, he felt oddly tongue-tied.
"I think that Todd says and does some really inappropriate things," Storm said awkwardly. She found herself not wanting to look away from her former lover, wanting to keep him near her and look at him, talk to him. She just didn't know what to say and therefore voiced the first thing that came to her mind. Inwardly she flinched, knowing full well that Wolverine was one of the only people in the galaxy who could reduce her to this verbal clumsiness.
"Yeah," Wolverine said. "He ain't been doin' much to train either. Cyke said Todd wanted to work with him just long enough to get his invisibility under control and soon as he had it, he stopped."
"It is a pity that we cannot recruit more X-men. Of course we had that problem on earth too," Storm mused.
"Seems everyone would rather sit on their ass and enjoy life here rather than work." As he spoke, his eyes seemed focussed elsewhere for a moment, on the entrance to the gym.
"Indeed." Storm turned her head to follow Wolverine's gaze, and she saw Sara Grey and Warren Worthington entering the gym together, holding hands. She remembered the words she'd said to Logan: if it didn't work out with Sara, Storm would gladly take him back. No,' Storm told herself. The offer has been made and I am not going to beg.' She turned back to Logan and for a second, thought she might have seen something in his eyes. It is probably meant for Sara,' Storm told herself.
She then excused herself and resumed her workout. Wolverine did not pursue, quietly going back to his own.
"So, is a marriage performed on An'zhina legal?" the former FOH soldier Mark asked Hector Rendoza over lunch the day before Hank and Panda's wedding.
Hector shrugged. "On An'zhina it is."
"But back on earth it probably wouldn't be," Mark said.
"Well it sure doesn't look like anyone's going back to settling on earth anytime soon. Especially not two people who look like the bride and groom. Or someone who looks like me," Hector added.
Mark knew better than to mutter any sort of platitude about Hector looking just fine. Instead he shocked Wraith with a question. "Do you think they'd let me go on the next mission?"
"What??" Hector asked, disbelieving his ears for a moment.
"I know it sounds crazy. But I would really like to go along with you X-men on this mission you're leaving for on Monday."
"But you know you can't go back to earth, Mark. Unless you want to be on the run forever. I'm sure the FOH will find you and track you down, and kill you as a traitor. Or worse. But anyway, in case you haven't heard, the plan isn't for the X-men --- us X-men--- to beam anyone up or down from earth. In fact, we're probably going to hang back a few days from the planet."
"I know. You mentioned that to me before. But Hector, I'm not trying to return to earth. I want to go on the mission."
"Why?"
"I want to help out---in any way that I can," Mark said, his voice carrying a hint of fervor. "I've mistreated mutants in my life. I've done a lot of things I'm not proud of to mutants…to your people, Hector! I want to do something to help make it right. Raking leaves and washing dishes on An'zhina was nice but it didn't really help mutantkind. I want to do more."
Wraith listened to his friend, nodding. Poor Mark,' he thought. He wants to belong. Doesn't everyone?' he mused, thinking about his own reasons for joining the X-men. Hector definitely hadn't joined because the thought of perilous missions and rigorous training appealed to him.
A few hours later, Mark met with the Professor. Following that, Mark and the Professor met with Cyclops, Storm, Jean, and the three X-men field commanders. They discussed Mark's request at length and he reiterated his reasons for wanting to assist on the mission. Once Mark left the room, both Xavier and Jean stated that they were completely certain that Mark's intentions were honest and he had no hidden agenda.
The decision was made to allow him on the next mission and train him on bridge duty and other essential ship functions.
"You are one lucky woman! What do you mean no morning sickness??"
Jubilee spoke the words incredulously to Panda on the day of the wedding as the three prepared for the ceremony. Panda had just finished reiterating to Jubilee and Jean that, amazingly, she had felt no morning sickness nor had her pregnancy really caused her anything other than minor discomfort so far. The three had discussed this topic before and both of the mothers were still surprised at Panda's ease to this point.
"Sometimes I think I could almost forget that I'm pregnant," Panda had laughed.
"You might feel more of the standard discomfort as you progress," Jean said to her.
"I know. Moira MacTaggert says so, anyway." Panda laughed. "She was so cute the other day when she was offering me some tips about pregnancy and childbirth. She patted my side and said, Lass, you have the hips for childbearing. It shouldna be a problem for you at all.'" Panda imitated Moira's lilting accent best she could.
Jean and Jubilee smiled along with Panda at Moira's words, and Panda tried to hide the twinge of hurt she felt. Look at me,' she thought. I'm surrounded by so many beautiful women – like my two bridesmaids right here---and I'm such an ugly duckling, wide hips, furry face, and all.' Then she made herself stop that train of thought. I'm not going to feel sorry for myself! Hank thinks I'm beautiful and I'm so lucky to have him. And we'll be raising a baby together. Jubilee doesn't have anyone and she has to raise her daughter by herself.' Panda shook her head. Knock it off,' she said to herself, Mom always used to say don't compare yourself to others since it doesn't do any good, and just be glad for what you have.'
Jean and Jubilee were Panda's bridesmaids. When she and Hank had sat down to choose their wedding party, they had deliberated for quite a while. Hank was friends with most of the X-men and had a great deal of trouble narrowing his selection of groomsmen down. Meanwhile Panda was certainly on friendly terms with the X-women but she had nowhere near the number of close friends as Hank. Eventually the couple decided that the bridal party would consist of all the original X-men----Cyclops, Angel, Bobby, and Jean. As Hank was one of the originals, they liked that arrangement best. However, they also asked two others to join the bridal party---Wolverine (because he and Hank had bonded over the years) and Jubilee (partly because she and Panda were the same age and enjoyed each other's company, and partly so Jean would not be the only bridesmaid.) It meant there would be an uneven number of groomsmen and bridesmaids, but as Hank had said, "It hardly matters---we are certainly an unconventional couple as it stands." Bobby had already been selected as best man, and both young girls Aurora and Charlotte would reprise their roles as flower girls, along with Shaman's daughter Lily Pearl.
The ceremony would be performed by Professor Xavier. As neither Hank nor Panda were religious (in fact, both were agnostics) they felt it would be hypocritical to ask Kurt to perform the wedding, and instead opted for a secular ceremony. Xavier said he was honored at being asked to officiate.
Jubilee had been quite flattered when Panda asked her to be in the party, but one saying had flashed through her mind: "Always a bridesmaid, never a bride." So true,' Jubilee said to herself.
"There you go," Jean said. She had just finished securing Panda's wedding veil on. Panda was an easy bride to prepare, as she wore no make-up (it never mixed well with the fur that covered her face) nor was it necessary to do anything with the hair on her head (as her entire body was covered with fur and, like a real panda bear, the hair on her head wasn't particularly longer than the pelt anywhere else.) "Now go take a look at your beautiful self in the mirror," she said, ushering Panda to the full-length reflection.
Panda smiled at the reflection. "Well, I look like an upright panda bear in a yards of white fabric," she joked. The bride was too early in her pregnancy to be "showing" yet, though her belly was naturally rounded anyway. Oh, to heck with it!' Panda thought. 'I might not be beautiful like Jean or Jubilee but maybe if I didn't look this way, Hank and I probably would never have gotten so close. Our appearance helped bring us together and, in that case, it's a blessing!'
"Panda!" Jean exclaimed. She knew that behind Panda's self-depreciating humor was some genuine hurt. It didn't take a telepath to pick up on that occasionally. "Well, I say you look beautiful."
"I do too!" Jubilee piped up, though deep down she was quite glad that she had her own mutation and not Panda's. Still, Jubilee did sincerely think Panda looked beautiful in her own unique way.
Rogue and Gambit scrambled to prepare for the ceremony. The wedding was being held late in the morning, and both had been up quite late the night before and had lingered in bed too long that morning.
"I can't believe how late we're runnin'!" Rogue said, as she stepped out of the shower and reached for a towel to dry herself. "Hank would have our heads if we were in the weddin' party!"
"T'ank goodness we not in the party. But don' worry----we make it, chere," Gambit said calmly. "Got fifteen minutes."
"Holy shit! We gotta haul ass."
Gambit stood before the steamed bathroom mirror, shaving and clad in a towel. Upon seeing Rogue emerge from the shower, he gazed at her nude form out of the corner of his eye. Rogue bent to dry her legs, her plump breasts in tantalizing view. Gambit set his razor down and smiled as felt himself begin to stiffen and swell.
"No, Swamp Rat!" Rogue said, understanding full well the look in his eyes. The look was enough to excite her and she began to feel stirrings, but she knew they had no time for an erotic encounter now. "Don't even think it!"
"C'mon, chere," Gambit said, low and seductively. His eyes looked her up and down and he made a show of licking his lips. "We got time."
Rogue went up to her husband and touched a hand to his shoulder. "After the ceremony," she whispered. "We'll go right back here and do it. Let's wait till then, sugar. It'll be all the more better."
"Okay," Gambit sighed. He reached for and kissed the hand she'd laid on his shoulder, knowing she was probably right. Were they to finish getting ready now, they could still arrive at the wedding on time. Were they to make love, they would be late---no doubt about it, especially since Remy liked to take his time. Arriving so late would be quite disrespectful to a beloved friend as Hank. "Afterwards den we come back here and Gambit gonna make you feel so good," he murmured. He reached for her breasts and, taking one in hand, bent to kiss a rosy nipple.
Rogue reached around to briskly slap his rear, and then forced herself to back away. "I ain't surprised you had 100 different women, Mr. Suave," she said, bemused.
As Gambit looked at her face, he again saw a flash of something that had been bothering him for a few days. He detected that she was a twinge mad at him over something. It was unlike Rogue to not tell someone if she were angry---in fact, she'd usually tell them right away----yet she wasn't communicating it with him now. Gambit again wondered if perhaps he was misreading what he occasionally saw in her features. But I know her for so long,' he thought. She be jus' a bit mad at Remy and I wish I knew why.'
Both Rogue and Gambit fought back their arousal, finished preparing and took their seats at the ceremony in the nick of time. As the wedding march began, Rogue noticed a small patch of shaving cream still on Gambit's face and deftly wiped it away.
Back in their room, the portrait frame that Peter Rasputin had given them for their wedding was stashed inside a closet. Colossus's wedding gift to the two had been the promise of a painting of the couple, and he had bestowed a frame upon them until the three had the time to sit down and make the painting happen. Colossus had never had the chance. When Rogue and Gambit returned from the last mission, Gambit had painfully moved the portrait into a closet. During Hank and Panda's wedding ceremony, Gambit remembered the gift and felt another stab of hurt for his fallen comrade.
Wow, my second time in a wedding ceremony and my first time being best man! I really was honored. As us groomsmen got prepared, Hank looked very happy but taking it all in stride.
There was some tension in the room as Hank, Angel, Cyclops, Wolverine and I put the finishing touches on our tuxedos. There was no love lost between Wolverine and Angel, and I knew it had to do with one Sara Grey. (Since Jean-Paul had been recovering, I had been getting back into paying attention to what was going on with my teammates and Jubilee one day filled me in on this triangle.) I think Wolverine was doing his best, out of respect for Hank, to mask his feelings though. I suppose I don't need to add that he and Cyclops weren't acting as best buddies either. But again, we all respected Hank so much that everyone was civil. I kept trying to crack jokes and keep everyone upbeat which I think Hank appreciated. And I think Hank sincerely was elated to be marrying; he was not allowing the squabbling of the others guys to get him down.
The ceremony was quite similar to Rogue and Remy's. The wedding was held outdoors, Storm having used her powers to turn a chilly, windy day into a gorgeous one with an overjoyed sun smiling down on us. I helped with the decorations and, if I say so myself, they looked lovely.
Both Hank and Panda read traditional vows, though Hank added poetry onto his. I got the words from the portion of the poem he read, and it was called "The Union of Two" by Haki R. Madhubuti. He read:
"Marriage is an art,
created by the serious, enjoyed by the mature,
watered with morning and evening promises.
Those who grow into love
remain anchored
like Egyptian architecture and seasonal flowers…
so that your nation will live and
tell your stories accurately,
you must be endless in your loving touch of each other,
your unification is the message,
continuance the answer."
So I thought that was really beautiful. Good choice, Hank! What else can I say about the ceremony? I got all teary-eyed after the bridal march when Panda reached Hank's side before the Professor. I turned my head to look at Jean-Paul sitting in the front row, and he blew me a kiss just as he had before Rogue and Gambit's wedding too. Even the Professor, performing the wedding, looked a tad choked up.
After the actual ceremony, Hank and Panda greeted all of the guests as they left the area where the ceremony had been held and made their way to the reception area. I hugged both Hank and Panda, and told Hank that I loved him. He said he loved me too.
The reception was much like the one at Rogue and Gambit's wedding. As music played in the background, most of the X-men were crammed together at one of the largest tables. During the meal, the Professor spoke up and said he wanted to toast the newlyweds. Our table fell quiet though the clamor and noise from the other tables continued. Xavier went on to give more of a speech then a toast, though. He first spoke about Panda, praising her for joining the X-men and her speed at acclimating to the team, her dedication, how quickly she learned things, her brilliance, etc. (For a second, I thought I'd love to get married to hear the Professor say things like that about me in public!) When he was done with Panda, he went on to deliver a ten-minute panegyric about Hank. (By the way, the word "panegyric" is not usually in my vocabulary but I heard our beloved Hank use it and decided to put it here.)
The Professor was awfully sentimental that evening. I guess it was because it was a wedding, and we'd just had Colossus's funeral and a great healing ceremony days beforehand. And he knew that in two days' time, most of the rest of his X-men would be heading back towards earth on the first return mission that wouldn't include him. So I guess it was a combination of all of those things, but when the Professor was done listing everything wonderful Hank had done in the last fifteen years (and Hank was blushing furiously by then), he then surveyed all of us X-men sitting at the table and said, "I love you all."
I hadn't expected anything like that and was quite surprised. He was usually not sentimental in that way; I think we all knew he loved us but he never verbalized it till then (at least never that I could remember, though I was away from the X-men for seven years.) Hank was seated at one side of the Professor, and Jubilee at the other. Jubilee simply leaned over the bulk of his hoverchair, said "We love you too," and placed a kiss on his cheek. Best as he could from the hoverchair, he returned her hug. Little Aurora, sitting next to her mom, observed the interaction and then scrambled onto the chair to hug the Professor too.
We then went on with our feasting. After the large group was done with the scrumptious dinner, we partied. As at Rogue and Gambit's wedding, a large area had been made into a dance floor, but there was ample room for people to sit around, talking and laughing if they didn't want to dance, as well. I just sat back against one of the sofas with my drink in hand, at one point watching Jubilee's daughter Aurora playing with Jean-Paul. The two were merrily rolling and tossing a coaster back and forth. Scott and Jean sat nearby, watching and little Charlotte especially seemed to enjoy observing. She squealed with glee several times as that coaster took to the air. Aurora noticed that the other child liked watching her toss the coaster, so she did it with more flair each time. Me, I was enjoying watching Jean-Paul's interactions. He was such a natural with the kids.
Hank and Panda kept the traditional tossing of the bridal bouquet and garter. When our deejay Russ implored all the single folk to get ready to catch, I was sobered up for a second. I remembered that at Rogue and Gambit's wedding, Jubilee had caught the bouquet and Colossus the garter. Since then, Jubilee had been dumped by this Lisman guy and Colossus had been killed. I'm not real superstitious, but I would not have been in a hurry to catch this time. At Hank and Panda's wedding, the bouquet was caught by Siryn. The guy who caught the garter was one of the rescuees from the first camp we liberated in England but I couldn't recall the man's name.
I noticed, by the way, that Storm watched from the sidelines; she made no attempt to get in the running for catching the bouquet. My eyes darted around and spotted Wolverine. He hadn't attempted to catch either, which really didn't surprise me one bit.
After the jubilation of Hank and Panda's nuptials, a night of passionate loving followed for many of the X-men. Rogue and Gambit finally were able to finish what they had started before the ceremony.
And, of course, the newlyweds. Hank carried Panda over the threshold of their room which was now decorated with gifts and adornments. Hank inspected the gifts, noting the ice sculpture Bobby made. He truly had honed his mutation into an art form now; the bestial couple in the ice sculpture bore a very good resemblance to the newlyweds. However, Panda deemed that her husband was spending entirely too much time pouring over the gifts, so she secured him by his bow tie and ushered him towards the bed.
The Grey family had several long and protracted conversations regarding who would be boarding Freedom for the next mission to earth. Scott and Jean looked at each other during the last discussion, each feeling a hint of awkwardness: Warren Worthington had joined the family for these talks. It's not that I'm not glad to have him…in the family, so to speak.Jean hastily assured Scott via their mindlink. Angel's a great guy. This will just take some getting used to, you know what I mean?
Scott sent a nod back through their mindlink. He then thought that it was scary how frequently the two of them agreed on everything.
"Dad, please," Jean implored her father. "We've discussed this part a million times. I am going on this mission. Period. End of discussion."
Elaine Grey looked at her husband. "You know when she has her mind made up like this, there's no stopping her," Elaine said.
"I know," John replied. "It just is hard to accept that we're finally reunited after so long, and now you're heading off on another one of these dangerous missions."
"I told you how safe this mission will be," Jean said, firmly though pleasantly. "Scott and I will be in no danger and neither will the kids. This will place us at far less risk than I was in during most of my years as an X-man on earth."
The family talked it through some more. John and Elaine at one point also insisted on coming with, but Jean convinced them that there would be little they could do to "protect" her and they likely were better off on An'zhina. John and Elaine eventually agreed. They weren't getting any younger and they had fallen in love with An'zhina just as most who'd been brought there were. They just hated the thought of parting from Jean when their reunion---after years separated---had only lasted a matter of weeks.
Sara then looked at her kids and at Angel. "We will be staying here," Sara said. "Though I hate having Joe separated from you, Scott, since you helped him so much" she added. Cyclops had been a huge help to his nephew in assisting Joe with controlling his power to see through objects. Given that Scott's own mutation impacted his eyes, he had a natural ability to convey what Joe needed to know to control his powers.
"Mom, I told you I got it down," Joe said. "Uncle Scott's been great and I got it all under control now." The preteen was thrilled at no longer needing to bandage up his eyes. He had also discovered a few illicit uses for his powers which were intriguing him.
"I love An'zhina," Gail piped up. "It's so cool that we're staying here."
Angel and Sara had, at one point, considered coming with the X-men on their mission. However Sara's children were dead-set against being cooped up in a cold starship for ten weeks, and Sara could hardly blame them. They fully deserved a vacation, after having spent so long back on earth, confined to the Grey's attic. Sara was not about to separate from her children, and Angel had no intentions of separating from Sara. He felt he'd easily earned a "vacation" of sorts given all his service to the X-men over the years. And Angel would be working with Banshee and Moira on the governance of An'zhina and training the new mutants. It would hardly be a vacation; there was always much to be done.
"I will miss you all," Jean said to her family. "But it will only be for about 10 weeks. And you'll all be safe here."
So the family had made their decisions. Angel and Sara then walked with Gail and Joe to the rec room, Angel with his arm around Sara. He was happier than he'd been in a long time. At last he found a woman who wanted to settle down and commit, not someone who just wanted to play around with his heart as Betsy had. Another plus about Sara was that she was not carrying around the trauma that all the female camp survivors experienced.
Gail and Joe were basically okay with Warren too; they were gradually warming towards him. If only I had all my riches back on earth!' Warren had mulled over. He could've showered them all with extravagant gifts, easily winning the children's adoration.
The only disheartening thing, Warren thought, would be that if he and Sara stayed together (and he sincerely hoped and thought they were in for a long-term relationship), he would have no children of his own. Sara had shared with him that she had experienced difficulty with both her pregnancies, and after Joe was born, her doctor had encouraged her to have a hysterectomy. So her childbearing days were over. Warren, however, wasn't dwelling on that now. He was merely glad to have found her, and at having been chosen over Wolverine
"Your skills are as strong as ever," Storm said to Gambit over a card game in the rec room. They had just finished a rigorous session in the Danger Room, during which Gambit had skillfully used his thief wiles to maneuver his way out of a complex situation. "Both as a fighter and as a thief."
"Why thank you, Storm," Gambit said, glowing at the praise. He loved Storm as one of his closest friends. She was the reason he joined the X-men and in some ways, he strove always to please her. "Can't believe we leavin' tomorrow already. But Gambit lookin' forward to it. Maybe we finally make some real change on earth."
Storm nodded, and Gambit continued, "But what's the deal wit' Mark coming with us??"
"It did surprise me," Storm admitted. "But during the meeting he had with the rest of the leadership, the Professor and Jean were certain his intentions were exactly as he stated."
"Gambit don't like it, Storm. What sort of good he really gonna do on board Freedom?"
"Well, we've been training him for bridge duty. He's learning it well, so it will likely mean one less shift for each of us. Since Angel is not coming on this mission, we could use another person for that station."
"I don't believe it when Rogue tell me after the meeting and I still don't believe it today. A Friends of Humanity solider in control of our bridge??" he asked incredulously. Gambit then added sarcastically, "Maybe when we get back to earth we see if Monsieur Sinister still alive and invite him to sit at the weapons station, eh?"
Storm smiled, almost a rare smirk. When Gambit asked her what she thought was so funny, she replied, "Your reaction is nearly identical to Wolverine's."
"Cept for de Cajun accent, huh?" Gambit quipped.
"Well, I will answer you the way Jean and Cyclops answered Wolverine. There is very little damage one man on the bridge can inflict that could not be remedied rather quickly. Besides, we are certain of his desire to help and that he means us absolutely no harm."
"Little damage he could inflict?" Gambit repeated, still not quite believing his ears. "What 'bout turning off the cloak, turning off life support, purging dilit'ium, or setting the damn ship on autodestruct?!"
"It takes more than one crewmember to turn off life support or set the ship on self-destruct," Storm said. She had held this argument before and knew how to reply. "If he attempted to do that, there are numerous alarms that will go off."
"Unless someone disable dem."
"You and I might be the only two who could quickly and easily disable the alarms without anyone noticing," she said to her fellow ex-thief. "Gambit, please don't worry," Storm implored. Gambit loved her voice----it was so rich and calm and mature. He always had liked it. "I am confident in this decision and confident that Mark wants to help. The Professor and Jean don't make mistakes about something like this. Mark is an ordinary human being with no ability to shield his thoughts from the two strongest telepaths in the galaxy. If there existed the slightest chance that Mark had any inkling in the back of his mind about hurting us, they would have detected it. We have nothing to fear."
"Whatever you say, Storm. Gambit t'ink dere be a lot better ways Mark can work off his guilt and we be jus' settin' ourselves up for trouble."
The two continued their card game in relative silence for a while longer. A handful of mutants had been in the rec room with them, but Gambit looked up and noticed that he and Storm were now alone. He used the opportunity to ask a question. "So you ever gonna tell us what be wrong wit' you, Storm?"
Storm didn't hide a frown. The question riled her---she had heard it too many times from Rogue, Jean and others---and she had no intentions of discussing her emotional state. "I suppose it is blatantly obvious what is wrong, and I appreciate that you care but I have no desire at all to discuss it." Her voice came through more acrid and irate than she had intended.
"Ouch," Gambit said.
"I'm sorry, Remy. I meant the words that I said but I didn't wish to hurt you."
So that was the end of that topic. Storm wasn't going to open up and Gambit would have to deal with it. Rogue had tried several times as well to reach Storm but Storm had no desire to share. It's so embarrassing,' Storm thought to herself. The Majestrix Windrider sitting around and pining over a man who obviously doesn't want her. A man who was rejected by another woman but who doesn't return to her. And absolutely everyone knows what's going on.'
"Okay, so we don't talk bout you. Dat's fine," Gambit said. "But can you tell me if you know why Rogue's mad at me?" he asked.
Storm raised an eyebrow. "It is not like Rogue to ever hold back or refrain from telling someone if she's angry."
"I know! But I can tell she be kinda mad at me….Not over anyt'ing big but she say and do little t'ings so dat I know she be sorta pissed bout somet'ing."
"Maybe you should ask her," Storm said.
"Don't you t'ink I have?" Gambit asked. Now it was his turn to come off more harsh than intended. His patience with the entire situation was, however, running thin. "She not tellin' me anyt'ing."
Storm stared intently at her cards, wishing the conversation hadn't gone down this path. Of course she knew why Rogue was upset and Gambit had to have known full well that Storm was the first person Rogue would come to. Why on earth did he put me in this awkward position?!'
Storm remembered well the conversation she and Rogue had had, just a few short days ago. Storm had advised Rogue to forget about Gambit's former lovers. You know that he loves you and you know that he will not betray you,' Storm had said. 'There is no reason to resent him for things he did before he ever met you.' Storm had gone on to tell Rogue that her first-ever lover ("so many years ago," Storm had wryly added) had been very experienced and that Storm appreciated it as it had made him a better lover.
Rogue had simply said that she felt bad for being down on Remy for this but she couldn't shake the feeling of jealousy.
"Sometimes she be acting like she don't trust me," Gambit was saying. "What else I gotta do for her an' everyone to show dat I can be trusted?!"
Storm focused back on Gambit and suddenly felt a stab of hurt for her friend. Beneath the budding anger was some genuine anguish. He had been through much in his life, how much pain Storm could only guess at, but she saw in those fire-red eyes deep lava pools of long-buried sorrow. She was moved to reach across the table and grasp his hand. "There were those who said you were a thief and a liar," she said. "But I knew in my heart when I first met you that was not so. And now you have proven yourself over and over to be one of the most honorable and reliable men I have ever met. Rogue knows this too. I know that the two of you will manage to work it out."
Gambit's heart warmed at her words and her touch. "Thank you, Stormy," he said.
TO BE CONTINUED
Your feedback means a lot to me. Please send it to: stormkprusa.net
I loved Lord of the Rings! Just thought I'd let you know. J Maybe someday you'll see hobbits, rings, elves, and sorceresses in "Freedom." You never know.
Chapter 19
Chapter 21