An eerie silence hung in the air around the torch, protecting it's inhabitants from the panicked screams rolling across the water from on Liberty Island, and the growing noise of approaching sirens. Remy was the only one able to enjoy the quiet, not that he was enjoying much of anything at that moment. There was an urgent-ness in his motions, as he closed the short distance between himself, and the still Rogue.

As gently as possible, he destroyed her handcuffs with a touch of his hands. As she slumped down, Remy reached out, taking the girl's light, limp form gently into his arms. She was shaking, shivering, spasming against him. A breath broke weakly from between her lips. There was an irregular pause between that and the next one. Suddenly her hand convulsed on his arm, nails biting into his skin even through the tough leather. Rogue arched her back, a weak moan peppering the silence around them. Remy clamped his arms tightly around her as she writhed in pain. It was clear to him what was happening. Exactly what Magneto had promised: Rogue was dying.

And there was nothing he could do.

Each breath was murder for Rogue, as she hung on the border of oblivion. Magneto's machine had been designed to handle his power. Rogue had not. The sheer immensity of the force that has swelled within her had burst the blood vessels running through every muscle in her body, including her heart. With each feeble beat, Rogue's own heart was forcing herself to bleed to death internally.

Utterly exhausted, Rogue's screaming muscles relaxed briefly as a painful spasm abated, and she lay limp and still in Remy's arms once more. Then, slowly, one…than another forest green eye pierced the darkness to regard the Cajun as he held a silent vigil.

"Took you long enough…" The whisper was hoarse and unearthly, not to mention barely audible, but it caught Remy's attention nonetheless. He reached out and ran a partially-gloved hand gently over her cheek. Rogue leaned into the gesture weakly.

"Sorry, chere," he apologized. "We got a little tied up down dere." He tried to keep his voice light and teasing, but his poise slipped for one of the first times in his life as his tenor voice cracked with emotion. Rouge took another shaky breath.

"I thought you were dead," she stated. He smiled and shrugged gently, trying not to jar her prone body.

"Yeah, Ah was," he responded, recalling how Jean told him his heart had stopped on the flight to New York. "Ta quote yer hairy friend 'Ah got better'."

"Is Logan okay?
"Yeah, unfortunately," he said sarcastically, shooting a cursory glance at where Logan lay in front of them. He was out cold, but his chest was still moving. Rogue would have hit Remy for being a smart ass if she'd been able to feel her arm, but she settled for shooting him her best chastising look. It was getting harder for her to breathe, but she tried to talk anyway. She wasn't going to waste a second of the time she had left.

"Nice…" she began, but broke out in a fit of coughing. Remy rubbed his hand softly against her back as she spluttered weakly. A trickle of blood leaked from the corner of her mouth. Rogue didn't notice, and Remy made no move to draw attention to it. As her hacking subsided, Rogue took another raspy breath and tried to speak again.

"Ni…ce…out…fit." Remy forced a light chuckle through his lips, for her sake. Not many girls could make jokes in a situation like this. That though gave the knife is his heart another cruel twist. 'What am Ah gonna do witout her?' Remy asked himself, but what he said out loud was,

"Really, you like chere?" He shook his head slightly. "Personally Ah don't tink leather and Ah agree, but…"

"You do," she sputtered.

"By da way," he said, trying to look calm. "Ya owe me a new coat."

"I'll…get right on that, big guy," she said after a pause. He was a lousy actor, she decided. Trying too hard to be calm and cool. She was suddenly struck with a pang of guilt. It was all her fault that he was here, after all. "Look," she started to say. "Remy… I'm so sorry…"

But he shook his head again.

"T'aint nothin' ta be sorry 'bout," he said. "Ah wouldn't 'ave missed an adventure lik dis fo' de world." He let the sentence hang in the air as Rogue's grip on his arm lessened suddenly, and she closed her eyes. "Rogue?"

She didn't respond except to draw another shuddering breath, her entire body quivering lightly. Remy pulled her closer to his body, trying to fend off whatever chill was plaguing her.

"You should stay with them," she told him suddenly, leaving no room for argument. "The X-men can be your family now…just like the Guild was. Promise…promise me…you'll…stay?" Her voice was barely above a whisper now, her lips moving soundlessly. She forced her eyes open against the impending darkness to look at Remy for his response. She knew what has happening. The look on Remy's face was enough to confirm her worst fears, she wasn't going to walk away from this. But if the X-Men had taken the Cajun in, if she knew she wouldn't be leaving him alone, then this process would be so much easier on her. He'd saved so many people tonight, he and Logan had. He'd saved her so many times earlier. He was cut out for this hero stuff. Rogue knew it. As long as he'd stay…than this would all be worth it.

Ultimately…it would all worth it.

Remy brushed the covered part of his hand gently along her cheek again, Rogue relishing in the comforting touch, before he nodded.

"Ah will, Rogue, if you do, o'course," he responded. "Come ta tink of it, let's make a new rule: while Ah live, you don' die, kay?" She would have smiled…she tried to, but there just wasn't enough strength left in her body. The darkness of the night around her began forcing in, and Rouge focused all her attention on Remy's face, looming above her, as everything else was thrown into oblivion.

Her complexion ghostly pale, Remy clutched the girl's limp body tightly against him. If what she wanted was for him to stay at that crazy institute, then he'd do it, for her sake. He knew that at this point, he should have been begging Rogue to hold on, willing her to be strong. But Rogue had experienced more pain and suffering in her short 18 years than most people did in a lifetime, and she'd been forced to be strong for far too long now. If she was going to go, Remy wanted her last moments to be full of the peace she never knew.

But, oh, it was killing him inside, watching the life slip from her body. Slowly, painfully…his heart was shattering with each gasping breath she took. Her vibrancy, her spirit, they were all draining out oh her body. Her life…

That though made Remy's blood freeze for a moment. He thought back to something Jean had said earlier when she briefed him on the plane.

"Rogue's touch drains the memories, the powers, the very life force out of any living thing…"

If Rogue's own life force was slipping away, then he'd use her power's to her advantage: he'd give her his life force instead. Without hesitation Remy moved his hand down to Rogue's chin and turned it up towards him. The motion stirred what little strength she had left in her and Rogue cracked one eye open to regard him. She didn't need to be a telepath to know what he was planning. As he leaned in to kiss her, her lips parted.

"No…don't,…I'll kill…you too…" she forced from between them, grimacing in pain as the last of her strength failed her. She struggled feebly, but Remy wasn't letting her slip through his fingers, not this time around. She'd clawed her way into his heart; she meant too much to him.

"Shhhhh," he consoled her once again, leaning in. "Ah can't tink of a better way to go, luv."

His face loomed near in Rogue's field of vision as she tried to brace for contact. He was so close, but so was the darkness. He grew closer…closer…as the blackness swallowed up the world around her…taking Rogue with it…

AN: We're in the home stretch now (no pun intended). Bonus point to anyone who can spot the 'magic' line in this chapter and tell me why it's so special ;) Keep Reviewing!