Authors Note: thanks for all the lovely reviews, I'm really pleased you all seem to be liking this so far. Sorry if I don't seem all that enthusiastic at the moment, I've been quite unwell recently and being ill sucks. Anyway, shout outs!

Ishandahalf: oh I've been drinking tea since I was 6 years old, a nice cup of tea will cure just about anything and that's a fact. No scones today, but they are nice in the summer with strawberry jam. Yum ;-) Crumpets are where it's at in the winter…see, the stereotype works. I can't think of any Canadian stereotypes right now, except the "all Canadians are awesome" one put forward by my friend. I'm sure you'd agree with him!

Heartsyhawk: I'm glad you like it! Bless her, Kitty was only trying to help, but yeah, if I were her I'd stay on my toes too!

Freak87: yes she has, but then again what's your youth for if you don't go a little crazy ;-) you could be right about the keys, I wonder why keys love to go missing so much, I've lost mine 4 times this month already…worrying

Chica De Los Ojos Café: I hope "interesting" is a good thing! Haha, I've spent the last however-many chapters trying to translate your name and I really can't. Help me out? Ta for reviewing.

Sweety8587: haha, I've yet to meet anyone who's a morning person. Y'know what? I'm not sure they actually exist, its all just urban legend. Yeah, you gotta love Remy, arrogance and all, he wouldn't be the same without it ;-)

GothikStrawberry: ooh I wouldn't put it past him! Glad you're enjoying it so far, thanks for the review.

NiNab: hmm, a lot of things can happen over coffee ;-) thanks for reviewing.

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Music When The Lights Go Out
Chapter Four (Something about Coffee)

The beauty of being your own boss is that you can always put someone else in charge for an hour or so and that is exactly what Rogue did. The gallery was a little dead that day anyway, she had opened a bit late so really she figured she had very little to lose.

She thought she was probably crazy agreeing to go with Remy, but she didn't have much choice, after all, he had solved her key problem and she had always been taught that one good turn deserved another so here she was, going to coffee with the Cajun. The only problem was that currently, she didn't have a clue where she was actually going…

"Is this place much further?" she questioned, an eyebrow raised. They had been walking for blocks already and were still going strong. Rogue just hoped that Remy hadn't gotten them lost.

"Not too much longer chére, 'nother couple o' blocks or so," he told her. So he knew where he was going at least, that was a good sign.

Rogue sighed and rubbed her head, but trudged on anyway. Right now she wished she was back in her quiet little art gallery, where she could ride out the rest of her hangover in peace. Now some student she had hired on a part time basis was in charge for the day and Rogue hated to think what could happen. Oh yes, this Cajun had an awful lot to answer for as far as she was concerned.

"Here," Remy finally said, stopping far too abruptly for the busy New York streets. Rogue looked up and gasped a little. She had presumed they were going to a coffee shop, one of those smoky little dives she chose to frequent perhaps, Starbucks at best, but no, they were standing outside the entrance of the Plaza Hotel.

Rogue could feel her eyes widening as she stood there on the sidewalk with people milling around her staring up at the building; she must have looked like a tiny child staring at something shiny. Next to her, Remy laughed.

"What's de matter chérie?" he asked, eyeing the look on her face.

"Ya said we were goin' fo' coffee, ya never said anythin' about tha Plaza!"

"Yeah well Remy t'inks dat de coffee here is pretty damn good…"

Rogue tore her eyes off the building and looked at the man who had brought her here under false pretences. He was grinning insanely, she got the feeling he knew this might happen.

"Look chére," he said, suddenly serious, "if y' don' like it we can always go someplace else."

"Its not that, its just, Ah've never been ta a place like this before, are they even gonna let me through tha door?" she asked sceptically, eyeing her clothing. When she had dragged herself from her apartment earlier that morning, she hadn't expected to even meet the swamprat, let alone end up at the Plaza with him.

Whilst Remy was dressed smartly in a dark suit for what looked like an office job, she wore dark faded jeans, boots and a fairly old black top with a deep red jacket that was so worn and loved it was beginning to go a little at the elbows, thrown over the top to protect her arms from the slight chill that was beginning to nip in the air.

"I'm sure dey ain't gonna mind, Remy will make sure o' it."

Rogue looked decidedly unsure about the sentiment, after all, who was he to make that kind of promise?

"Fine then, c'mon swamprat, lets get this over with."

Carefully they picked their way through the throngs of people that milled aimlessly around the pavement, getting in their way. They made their way to the majestic glass doors of the hotel to have them held open by then ever-attentive doorman that was waiting there.

Soon, they were sitting at a window table in an expensive-looking restaurant, drinking coffee together.

"So chérie, how long are y' runnin' Piotr's exhibition fo'?" Remy asked as an icebreaker. After all, Piotr did happen to be perhaps the one thing that they had in common at the moment, it has certainly been what had got them in the same room…

"As long as people are interested in it Ah guess. Ah don't tend ta put time limits on the exhibitions Ah run, jus' so long as people are still comin' ta enjoy tha work."

"Well dats good news fo' Petey den, de folks at de party de other day, dey seem to be ravin' about it non?"

Rogue smiled weakly. " Yeah it went down well, but art is a fickle business Remy, kinda like fashion…stuff is all tha rage one minute, no-one can get rid o' it quick enough the next." She gently blew the steam off her drink.

"Anyway," she changed tack, trying taking the focus away from her for a little while at least. After all, this man had been as good as stalking her for the last couple of days; she should at least get to know a bit about him. " What do ya do?"

"Entrepreneur chére, so same as y' I suppose, but tres boring, especially compared t' runnin' an art gallery…" Rogue raised a slender eyebrow at his answer, his reluctance to comply and answer properly didn't exactly impress.

"C'mon LeBeau, specifics." She pushed.

"I t'ink de closest description is rarity sourcin', y' see, borin'."

"Fine."

She did wonder briefly why he didn't seem to want to talk much about what he did, but if he wanted to be like that then fine, he could be as childish as he liked, she wasn't prepared to let it bother her.

"C'mon den," Rogue inwardly sighed, the man was absolutely relentless. "Remy can tell de accents from de South, how did y' end up all de way up here?"

"Ah used ta live in Mississippi, ran away from home when Ah was a teenager. Ah didn't really know where Ah was going at first, jus' kinda aimlessly hitchhiked around the country, but Ah'd never been ta New York before so Ah wanted ta see it. Took alotta part time jobs an eventually got mahself a gallery, though its taken some time…"

"And is that what you've always wanted t' do? Own an art gallery?"

"Didn't really think about it much when Ah was younger, but Ah've always loved art, paintin's good escapism." This strange man who she had known a sum total of two days now knew more about her than many of her friends… "Go on then, how did a swamprat like ya end up in tha Big Apple?"

"Came up here on business a few years back an' never left, seems more convenient dis way anyway."

"But don' ya miss Louisiana?"

Remy leaned back in his chair a little and thought carefully about his answer. "Sure I do, sometimes, N'awlins was good t' me but y' gotta move on."

Rogue was down to the dregs of her coffee now; with any luck she wouldn't have to stay with this strange man, having this very awkward conversation for much longer. After all, once her drink was finished her debt would be repaid. Quickly, she downed the last of the beverage and took a quick look at the clock on the wall.

"Ah'm sorry Cajun, Ah've gotta go, thank ya for tha coffee, and for breakin' inta mah own gallery…" She stood up and picked her bag up off the floor in order to leave but was quickly cut off.

"De pleasure was all mine chérie," he said, taking her hand and kissing it. "I would like t' see y' again sometime."

Not knowing what to say, the best Rogue could do was offer a helpless smile before leaving the hotel and then walking very, very fast-practically running, down the crowded street and away from the building.


Aww, their first date! Well kind of…

I've been to New York, but I don't think I've even seen the Plaza, I have no idea if they would serve coffee. The closest I've got to a place like that is when a friend and I tried to wait in the lobby of The Ritz in London when it was raining (and we're talking a torrential downpour). We got kicked out :-(

Review pretty please? It'll only take a second of your time and it will make me very happy!