Disclaimer: Not mine! I mean, the disclaimer is all mine, but the X-Men aren't.

A/N: Here we go again… Damn, what a lame author's note. But I have nothing else to say! Except that the nail polish on my left thumb always manages to get chipped off into the shape of Canada… Weird.

SweetRevenge151, Peace215, Orage, Alyxandria,PomegranateQueen, rage-girl-05, flowerperson, Anamaniax,texasgrrl, enchantedlight, Ms.Rogue LeBeau, Rogue14,darkstorm5000, Red Eyed Cajun, EviltwinAlix, and PsychoRomyChica – Thanks all! How about some thank-you stress balls? I have a feeling you'll all eventually be needing them.

angyxoxo - Who doesn't want to have a raging hot Cajun boyfriend named Remy LeBeau? If there actually is somebody like that out there, I must meet them and smack them in the head. I'm dreading the day they break up too… We should start a support group, we'll definitely need it.

ASGT and Kat Maximoff – You were right, that was disturbing. Yet hilarious… But more disturbing.

Lightspeed Suzuka – Wow, that's a lot of destroyed Pietro Plushies… I'm definitely feeling the love. As for the preview, go to milehighcomics dot com backslash firstlook.

UniversalAnimeGirl – Wow, great review. So thorough, and good predictions, too! One of them actually is right, you'll find out in this chapter. But oh, Remy isn't living at the mansion, he's got his own apartment. More private time with Rogue that way. ;-) And I know that in the comics they've broken up before, and I'll keep my fingers crossed for them getting back together again, but it still hurts me… I just pretend it never happened. You're right, my friend, I'm queen of denial - just call me Cleopatra.

Pyro Lady – You'll find out eventually…

Misa1124 – Seeing as I'm technologically impaired, I have no clue how to retrieve deleted files – which might give you an answer as to whether there's a safety net for the memories. Bwa ha ha… Hope my evil laughter doesn't dishearten you. But hey, glad you joined our little party!

Sweety8587 – Wow, your ranting was very deep, and I enjoyed your trotting. As for drifting off and connecting to other memories, as the world's most powerful telepath, Xavier could just travel along the memories as he wishes – the connections just make it easier and systematic. He can look through them, and filter what needs to stay or go – if there are unrelated thoughts he might be taken to, he could travel back and take a different thread, or find his own way to the important stuff, ya know? At least, that's what I'm gonna go with.

Star-of-Chaos – Oh good, you saved me the trouble of noodle lashing, you're so considerate!

heartsyhawk – Sorry, no erasing from Rogue's pov. It'd throw off my flow, plus it'd be repetitive.

Raven2687 – I've read them, and you're the 2nd person comparing them to this fic - I'm so flattered! (ish swoons)

Calliann – I'm rather ashamed to admit that I'm not positive about the answer, but I would assume Antarctica too… Ahh, I've failed you as a Romy Goddess, I'm so sorry! See, now you've got me crying, I guess it all evens out. But could I still get a thank you? I'm dying for your updates!

ladychopsticks and TheRealMai – Your questions will be answered this chapter! Well, some of them.

Aro – Sadly, your tags were screwed up. Curses, the sarcasm was foiled again! ESRP? I've get that sometimes – you are now truly blessed with a divine gift, don't let it go to your head. ;-)

melancholic – Hey, better late than never, and your rambling made me smile. Glad your pitchfork is aimed at Belle, but can the rake join it? Don't fret, there's more fluff for you now. And thanks for those naughty thoughts about the 'piece of art', that sent me off into a nice fantasy land… YUM.

Here we go, some more uber sweetness… Warning: the following may cause cavities.

Loved and Lost, or Never At All?

Chapter 10 – Value

"We do not know the true value of our moments until they have undergone the test of memory." – Georges Duhamel

Remy held Rogue's hand, their fingers intimately intertwined, as he escorted her through the dark forest. She was blindfolded, so he cautiously led her, careful not to have her trip over anything - even though he'd always be there to catch her, and the idea of her falling into his arms was quite appealing... The dim evening light made the path more treacherous, but the rays of the setting sun filtering through the trees beautifully illuminated the giant smile on her face – she was clearly enjoying this little adventure.

"Where are yah takin' meh, Remy?" she asked him playfully, scrunching up her nose adorably when the blindfold began to slide down it.

"Can't tell y', chère, dat would ruin de surprise!" Remy answered matter-of-factly, and then saw the lake between the trees. "But don' worry, we're here."

Guiding her out of the woods, the two walked into a grassy clearing, on a cliff overlooking the water. This was Rogue's favourite spot to go away and think, and it held so much meaning for the both of them… It was where they spent time together, where they had worked on controlling her powers… It was the perfect location for today's celebration.

Remy grinned in anticipation – he put a lot of preparation into this, everything had to be perfect for his amour. Positioning her so she would have the best view of his set-up, he stepped behind her and untied the blindfold. The flimsy material floated to the ground as Rogue gasped, taking in the sight.

Remy's schedule had brought them right on time to witness a magnificent sunset – orange and red colours were streaked across the sky as the sun disappeared below the horizon, its last light shining over the picnic he had set out on a checkered blanket. The delicious-looking food he had prepared himself was surrounded by dozens of candles, placed on the grass and on the swing hanging from a nearby tree, all lit and bathing the clearing in a soft glow.

"Happy anniversary, Rogue," Remy whispered in her ear as he reached into his trench coat, pulled out a red rose, and trailed it along her collarbone.

She turned around to face him, eyes glistening. "Remy, this is… Oh, sugah, this is so beautiful," she breathed as a tear rolled down her cheek.

"Jus' like y', chère," he told her, leaning in to kiss the tear off her face, tasting its saltiness on his lips before capturing Rogue's own sweet ones. "No mo' tears, 'kay?"

"Even tears of joy?" she asked feebly, still overcome by emotion. She then laughed weakly, embarrassed. "Yah know, yer th' only one who can make meh cry like this…"

Remy gave her a gentle smile. "Tears o' joy will be de only tears dis Cajun'll make y' cry, I swear."

Rogue nodded and stepped into him, burying her head in his chest. "Ah love yah, Remy."

He closed his eyes, feeling peace wash over him with those four simple words. Wrapping his arms around her and burrowing his face into her hair, he breathed in her fresh scent while he told her, "I love y' too, Rogue."

They stayed like that until Rogue looked up at him, stroking his face with her hand. "Ah can't thank yah enough, Rem. Not just fo' this, fo' everything… Fo' helpin' meh touch, fo' lovin' meh… Ah never though Ah'd have all this," she admitted to him, her eyes boring into his with blazing intensity.

"I should be de one t'ankin' y'," he confessed, leaning in towards her while never breaking their gaze. "I never t'ought I'd have dis either, but den y' came along… Y' changed me, chère, f'r de better. Showed m' dat I could love, an' be loved… Merci, mon amour."

Every word he spoke was true – he was a different man because of her. Remy could scarcely believe that he was actually celebrating an anniversary with Rogue… Before her, the longest his relationships (if they could even be called that) lasted were a week. But now, a whole year together? It seemed surreal, but in the best way possible. He felt like the luckiest homme in the world, all due to Rogue, and he had to show her how much she meant to him.

Bending down, Remy captured her lips with his, first gently caressing them, but then the kiss grew more passionate. Their mouths opened, tongues massaging the other, as their bodies pressed closer together, both revelling in the heat they were creating.

Pausing to take a much-needed breath, Remy opened his eyes – whereas his glowed brightly with passion, Rogue's turned cloudy with desire. Smirking slightly, he gave her a quick peck before forcing himself to pull away and say, "We'll continue dis later, henh? We don' want de meal t' get cold."

She pouted playfully, making Remy want to savour her lips more than the food, but when she turned around and walked over to the picnic, he followed.

"Yah cook all this yo'self, Cajun?" Rogue questioned with an impressed air as she sat herself down on the blanket.

"Bien sûr (of course)," he replied, as he piled some food onto a plate and sat down beside her. "All yo' favourite Southern foods. Try dis," he told her, spooning some gumbo into her mouth.

"Mmm," she moaned, making him hard-pressed to control himself. "It's delicious."

Remy beamed at the compliment. He knew she would enjoy this evening – other girls might have wanted a night out in a fancy restaurant, but Rogue was different. She appreciated the little things, the intangible details – things like love and touch and the memories that they had shared together here meant the most to her, which was why he knew this was the perfect setting.

Their night continued flawlessly – by candlelight they teasingly fed each other, enjoying both the food and the company. After their meal was finished, they stretched out on the blanket and gazed up at the stars that twinkled above them on the warm, clear night.

Toying with a small jewellery box hidden in one of the many pockets in his coat, Remy decided that now would be the perfect time to give it to her. "Chère," he began, sitting up and pulling it out. "I got y' somet'in'."

"Oh, Rem, yah didn' have to," she insisted, sitting up as well. "Doin' all this fo' meh was mo' than enough."

"What's an anniversary wit'out a gift?" he shot back, handing her the package. "I saw it an' t'ought it was perfect f'r y'."

Rogue glanced up at him, eyes sparkling excitedly, and then back down at the box. She opened it slowly, and her jaw fell open. "Oh, Rem…"

She gazed down at the necklace he had actually bought for her, speechless. From the moment he first saw it, he knew she would love it – there was a small red rose pendant, so delicately crafted that it appeared real. It hung off a chain that was fashioned to resemble a stem and thorns – it was beautiful, yet had an edge to it, perfect for Rogue's gothic tastes.

"Ah love it," she whispered, close to tears again.

Picking it up, Remy leaned over and clasped it around her neck, dropping a kiss as he did so. "Une rose pour une rose (a rose for a rose)," he told her, watching as she raised her hand to her chest and clutched it.

"Ah'm a rose, huh?"

"Oui, chère," he said, tilting his head to examine her as he explained. "Y' seem prickly an' dangerous on de outside, but I've seen yo' true beauty."

She quickly ducked her head to try and hide her blush, but then crawled over to kiss him. "Thank yah, Remy. It's perfect," she told him, settling down in his lap. "Ah got yah somethin' too, yah know."

"Y' didn' have t' do dat…"

"What's an anniversary without a gift?" she recited with a smirk, reaching into her pocket and placing a small bundle of tissue paper in his hands. "Ah saw it an' thought it was perfect fo' yah."

Instead of unwrapping the paper, he charged it every so slightly – it glowed pink before disintegrating, leaving a handsome silver chain to fall into Remy's hands. It had two charms on it, resembling playing cards of the King and Queen of Hearts, and he felt his heart swell with love…

"Ah know it's kinda clichéd, but it screamed 'Remy'. Ah thought of givin' yah just th' King, cause Lord knows that describes yah perfectly," Rogue began to clarify, slinging an arm around his neck with a grin. "But Ah stuck in th' other one too, just to remind yah that Ah'm yo' Queen."

Tearing his eyes away from his gift, Remy looked at Rogue with a loving smile. "I'd never fo'get dat, chère."

Reaching for the chain, she fastened it on him. "There yah are, yer highness," she teased.

"Clichéd o' not, it's perfect," he declared, meaning every syllable. A gift had never meant so much to him…

He tugged Rogue closer to him, circling his arms around her. He nuzzled her neck, taking in the comfort and tranquility she offered him before it was too late. Even without lifting his head, Remy could tell it was getting darker around them – and it wasn't just the natural occurrence of night falling.

He sighed, and quietly murmured, "I don' t'ink I can get rid of dis memory…"

"So don't," Rogue advised, whispering what he needed to hear in his ear and running a hand up and down his arm in a soothing manner.

Her words slowly sunk it, and he realized that she was right. He didn't want these memories gone… He wanted her, and this was all that he had left of her now…

Pulling Rogue as close to him as possible, Remy held on to her tightly. He focused on the feel of her next to him, on her being there and the warmth she gave him. He concentrated, as hard as he could, on her being tangible, on not wanting her to fade away… He wasn't going to let her go, he refused to!

- X -

Charles Xavier gave a startled cry as he was violently forced from the mind of Remy LeBeau. Jerking backwards in his wheelchair, it was propelled towards a table, running into it and knocking over a lamp. It hit the ground with a crash and shattered into pieces, but the Professor paid it no attention – his concentration was fixed on the unconscious young man.

Suddenly the door was thrown open – Wolverine burst in, claws unsheathed.

"Where is that punk?" he snarled, eyes wild with rage. When they caught sight of Remy, he stalked towards him.

"Logan, please!" exclaimed Charles, raising a hand up. "What are you doing?"

"I heard something break and then smelled Gumbo, so I put two an' two together. He's got some balls to come back here and…" Logan ranted, but trailed off when he took a good look at his target, realizing he was unmoving on the couch. "What the hell? He's doin' it too?"

"Yes, Logan. I am in the process of erasing Mr. LeBeau's mind."

Retracting his claws, the feral mutant let out a loud growl. This didn't sit right with him… He couldn't fathom having his memories erased willingly – he supposed it was due to his own experiences, having lost his memories, wanting to know about his past… Although he was glad that Rogue's pain had lessened – he just wished it could've been done differently. Now Logan wanted Remy in that same pain, for all that he had caused her…

He had sworn to the Cajun that every tear Rogue shed over him would be one organ he ripped out of his body. He had been looking forward to the day he could make good on that promise, but the kid had found Charles first…

"This is some crazy shit," Logan muttered, cracking his knuckles, and then sighed. "You done yet?"

"Not quite. Mr. LeBeau has very strong mental abilities – he somehow managed to stop the procedure."

"You mean -"

"It appears that he has changed his mind."

"Just like Rogue did…"

Xavier bowed his head regretfully. "Yes, I'm afraid so."

"So he wants it to stop – why don'tcha leave the rest then?"

"I can't," came the reply, with a shake of the head. "I cannot simply stop in the middle of the process. If only recollections of Rogue from the past few months had been erased, then I could do so – the mind would still be able to comprehend things. However, during the memories I have passed through, Remy was reminiscing of previous times, times that happened before the memory I was currently in – I linked to them, and they were removed."

"So?"

"Because they were out of chronological order, it left a very chaotic mindscape – there are memories remaining where Remy may think of something that I have already erased, and the mind cannot handle that sort of confusion. Think of it like a puzzle, Logan – if too many pieces are missing, the picture makes no sense. The picture must be taken apart, or the brain will wear itself out searching for the missing pieces."

"Then there's nothin' you can do?"

"Unfortunately, no. I wish I could stop, or I would have during Rogue's procedure too, when she expressed her regret, but I'm afraid I must continue."

Scowling, the Canadian turned and headed towards the door. Before he could leave, the Professor spoke again.

"Logan," he called, arching an eyebrow in curiosity. "If you don't mind my asking, why would you wish for Remy to retain his memories? I was under the impression that you were none too fond of him being with Rogue."

"I'm not," grumbled Wolverine. "I just want the kid to remember so I can gut him without feelin' guilty." He refused to admit that he actually didn't mind Gumbo – Rogue was happier when she was with him… She smiled more.

"Ahh," acknowledged Charles, not commenting on whether he believed his response or not. "If you don't mind, would you please dispose of Mr. LeBeau's things?" he then asked, gesturing towards the garbage bag he had brought with him.

Grunting his assent, he slung the bag over his shoulder. "Call me when yer done with him, Charles," Logan said, and left the room.

Wheeling himself back over to the couch, Professor Xavier cleared his thoughts. With caution and a heavy sigh, he once again entered Remy's mind, searching out the memory of the anniversary.

- X -

In the middle of the clearing, a dark night fallen, Rogue and Remy clung to each other, refusing to let go. A strong breeze began to blow around them - the candles circling them flickered, but kept burning, and the couple remained firm in their embrace.

"I changed m' mind, chère," Remy cried into Rogue's hair. "I can't do dis anymo'!"

"Why'dja do it in th' first place?" she asked him curiously, pulling back slightly to look in his eyes. He could tell she wasn't accusing him, she only wanted to know why he had done this – the problem was, he wasn't sure anymore.

Resting his forehead on hers, Remy closed his eyes, unable to look at her. "I couldn' live wit' it, Rogue, knowin' what I'd lost… Knowin' dat I'd lost y'," he sobbed. "But now I know dat I made a mistake, it's harder losin' what little I have left o' y'…"

Cupping his face with her hands made Remy's eyes open again. He saw Rogue's own, filled with grief and compassion. "Looks like we both made mistakes, Remy," she murmured. "Maybe this one can still be fixed."

Before he could respond, Rogue leaned up and kissed him. It was filled with sorrow but also with love, and it made Remy's heart ache. He kissed back with all the passion he could muster, grasping her tightly, savouring the moment, determined not to let it slip away.

The wind around them began to bluster, with fog rolling in, and still their caresses continued – until Rogue began to fade away. She was like a ghost, almost intangible, but still Remy clung to her.

"Non, please don' leave me, chère!" he yelled, burying his head in her neck. He could still feel her pulse beating, that meant she was still there with him… "Please, don' leave me," begged Remy, his appeals lost in the storm brewing around him.

The candles blew out, one by one – Remy fell forwards, no longer supported by anything. Before being completely submerged in the fog, he frantically looked around – but Rogue had vanished.

Well, Remy sure failed miserably, didn't he? Poor guy. Oh well, he's the persistent type.

I hope I the Professor's explanation made sense – basically, when Remy was thinking of past memories with Rogue during the ones Xavier was currently going through, Xavier linked to those and erased them too. If the Prof was to stop right now, Remy would be able to remember memories where he thought of past events, but the events wouldn't be there – hence some insanity. Keep in mind that I didn't write Xavier linking to them and breaking the chronological order, just like I'm not writing every single memory – there is stuff that happens in between them, just nothing too terribly important.

Next chapter – It's time for some birthday celebrations!

So – how was it? Feel free to shower me with praise, I sure won't mind! Reviews ahoy, pretty please.

Toodles,

- ish -