Southern Comfort
Chapter 1: Cajun Spice
By: Rogue-Slayer13
Disclaimer: I don't own the characters of X-Men: Evolution, they belong to their respective creators.
Summary: Takes place from Cajun Spice and forward. Rogue returns with the X-Men, and Gambit decides to go abroad for awhile. What will happen when they run into each other again?
Note: This is my First X-Men: Evolution fic, and I haven't gotten to see all of the episodes in a long time, so please bare with me.
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Rogue woke up to find herself in a box car full of crates. Her hands were tied together behind her back, and her ankles were also tied together. As she became more aware of her surroundings, she realized she was covered up with a trench coat and that the owner of said coat was leaning with his left arm against the door frame, casually looking at the passing scenery.
"You," growled Rogue under her breath as she glared her companion.
Gambit casually glanced over his shoulder before looking back out the train door.
Rogue leapt to her feet, attempting to lunge at Gambit, only to fall face first onto the floor.
"I've been watching you for weeks, Rogue," said Gambit as he came over and gently grabbed Rogue by the upper arms and returned her to a seated position. "You're such an unhappy girl."
"Is it any wonder?" asked Rogue as Gambit covered her back up with his coat. "What do you want with me anyway?"
"I don't want anything. It's what you want." Gambit took a seat on a nearby crate, and began to fiddle with his deck of cards, while Rogue began to think of a way to escape.
"What is it with you and cards?" asked Rogue several minutes later.
Gambit looked up from his game of solitaire.
"Well you see. It's like having fifty-two explosives tucked away in one little pocket." Gambit shuffled the cards from his right hand into his left and pulled off the top card. "I always save her for last."
"Queen of Hearts?" asked Rogue.
"My lucky lady," said Gambit as he kissed the card. "She's gotten me out of a whole lotta jams."
"Then I need a deck of those," replied Rogue sarcastically.
"It is nice havin' someone to watch over you, Rogue." Gambit kneeled down next to Rogue. "So, if you're ready to accept my help, I can untie you."
Rogue thought about it for a moment.
"Okay."
Gambit zapped off the ropes.
"It's just time you took charge of your own destiny, 's all."
"Good idea," said Rogue as she kicked Gambit in the side, sending him stumbling across the car.
Gambit grabbed a hold of the sides of the door, as Rogue threw off his coat and withdrew his staff.
Rogue slammed the staff against Gambit's fingers, causing him to cry out.
"Ah don't like getting pushed in any direction, got it?" said Rogue as she leaned forward slightly.
"Point taken," replied Gambit as he charged the train. "Now here's mine: pull me in or I'll blow this box car off the tracks."
Rogue glared at him before pulling him back inside.
"You're just crazy enough to do it."
"We do what we have to, right, chérie?" replied Gambit with a slight smirk.
Rogue swung at Gambit's face, but he grabbed her wrist before she could make contact.
"I'm not afraid. Go ahead," Gambit pulled off Rogue's glove. "Absorb my thoughts. See for yourself that I mean you no harm."
Rogue reached for Gambit's face, but pulled back at the last second.
"Like Ah want you inside my head!" said Rogue as she turned and walked to the far end of the car and sat down.
Gambit grinned and went back to his crate to finish his card game.
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"Hey Kurt, have you seen Rogue?" asked Kitty as she came over to the table where Kurt was having lunch.
"No, I figured she vas vith you," replied Kurt.
"Nope, I haven't seen her all morning." Kitty took a seat at the table.
"Maybe we should tell Scott and Jean."
"That's not a bad idea."
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"What do you mean you can't find her?" asked Scott.
"She's like totally not been at school like all day," replied Kitty.
"We should tell the professor," said Jean. "Something could be wrong."
"Maybe Wolverine can go and look for her," added Scott as the group headed off to find the professor.
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"So where are you taking me anyway?" asked Rogue.
It'd been at least an hour since she'd said anything to Gambit, and she was getting bored.
"Nawlins," replied Gambit.
"Figures."
"What's that chere?"
"Nothin'."
Gambit gave a little shrug and the two went back to being silent.
"What are you playing?" asked Rogue as she glanced over her shoulder.
"Solitaire," replied Gambit. "Only ding you can play alone really."
Rogue turned to face Gambit.
"Do you know how to play anything else?"
"O' course I do, chere. Gambit knows how to play all de games," said Gambit as he finished his game of solitaire. "What about you?"
"I can play five card draw," replied Rogue casually.
"Why don't you come over here, so we can play?" suggested Gambit.
Rogue thought about it for a second before walking over and taking a seat on a crate across the makeshift table from Gambit.
"I haven't played in a while," stated Rogue.
"Gambit'll go easy on ya," replied the Cajun as he dealt out the cards.
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"Are you sure you aren't a hustler, chere?" asked Gambit several card games later.
"I guess I'm just good," replied Rogue with a grin. "Sides, we're not playin' for money. Unless you want to of course."
Gambit smiled.
"I think I'll save my money for later," said Gambit as he stood and went to the car's door.
"Whatcha lookin' at?" asked Rogue as walked over to Gambit.
"Our stops up ahead," replied Gambit as he turned and retrieved his coat and staff from their spot on the floor.
Rogue looked from the rapidly passing by landscape and back over to Gambit.
"We're not gonna do what Ah think we're gonna do, are we?" asked Rogue as Gambit put on his coat, and returned the staff to it's usual hiding spot within it.
"Haven't you ever jumped from a train before, chere?" asked Gambit as he pocketed his deck of cards.
"No Ah haven't actually," replied Rogue as Gambit came to stand beside her.
"Ya don't know what you're missing," replied Gambit as he took hold of Rogue's gloved hand. "It's easy, all y' have to do is jump when I say so. Leave the rest to me."
"Am Ah supposed to trust you?" asked Rogue as she looked from the passing ground and back to a grinning Gambit.
"Preferably," replied Gambit as he looked up ahead of the train. "One, two, jump!" With that Gambit leapt out of the box car followed closely by Rogue, who had Gambit's hand in a vice grip.
Gambit landed gracefully in a sitting position on the soft grass with Rogue sprawled across his lap laughing.
"I told y' it was fun," replied Gambit as Rogue rolled off of him and he stood up.
"That was a big thrill," said Rogue as Gambit helped her to her feet. "We should do it again."
"Next train doesn't come for awhile, chere." Gambit began walking with Rogue right beside him. "And I don't know about you, but I'm hungry, so why don't we get a bite to eat?"
"Sounds good to me," replied Rogue.
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"That's Rogue's back pack!" exclaimed Kurt as he, Kitty, and Wolverine tried to retrace Rogue's steps.
"Why would she just like leave her back pack here?" asked Kitty as she picked up the aforementioned item.
"I smell a Cajun," stated Wolverine as he sniffed the air. "You two go back to the professor, while I try and find some answers."
Wolverine then turned and left the bemused Kurt and Kitty.
"What's he mean by he can like smell a Cajun?" asked Kitty.
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"What is all of this?" asked Rogue as she followed Gambit through the streets of New Orleans.
"Mardi Gras!" replied Gambit with a smile as he looked at the floats and masked men and women who were moving past them through the streets. "Greatest party dere is."
Rogue watched as a float went by, and a man dressed as a jester threw strings of beads out into the crowd. Gambit caught a couple of strings in the air as the float passed by.
"Every belle needs some of dese," said Gambit as he put the necklaces around Rogue's neck.
The stared at each other for a moment before Gambit continued up the street. Rogue looked down at her necklace, and then back up at Gambit's disappearing form before hurrying after him.
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Pyro watched the tape of Magneto's demise for what had to be the hundredth, laughing hysterically. He'd just rewound it and was ready to watch it again, when he was suddenly spun around to find himself face to face with Wolverine who had a hold of him by the front of his uniform.
"I'm lookin' for Gambit," growled Wolverine.
"Watch it mate, you're wrinkling the uniform," replied Pyro, as he caused a huge fire dragon to appear in the room.
The dragon lunged forward, knocking Wolverine backwards. Wolverine did a back flip and was ready to fight again in no time.
"I'm really glad you stopped by, because I've been bored outta me skull," said Pyro.
The dragon lunged forward once more, but Wolverine leapt up, and grabbed the underside of the balcony, flipping himself up, and onto the top of the railing, where he jumped off, landing behind Pyro, and slicing off his back pack in the process.
"Huh?" Pyro watched as the dragon quickly disappeared.
He then turned and gave Wolverine a sheepish smile, which got him throw into the far wall. Wolverine walked over and picked Pyro up by the uniform with one hand, and extended the claws on his others.
"Where's your buddies?" asked Wolverine.
"Since Magneto's gone, Colossus bailed and went back to Russia. Sabertooth's out playin' with a big ball of yarn somewhere, and Gambit didn't leave a note of the fridge."
Wolverine growled and three Pyro back across the room where he landed in his chair and spun back around to face the TV monitor.
"Okay, take care. So long. Ugh, don't get all weepy on me. Let's not drag this out or anything," called Pyro as Wolverine left the room. "I know just how to turn this frown upside down," said Pyro as he turned Magneto's tape back on.
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"So, have you always been a thief?" asked Rogue from her spot next to Gambit in the jazz club.
"I guess you could say it runs in the family," replied Gambit casually.
"What, like your father?"
"If you could call 'im that."
"What do you mean?" asked Rogue.
Gambit was about to reply when a group of guys came over to there table.
"Y'know this is Ripper territory, Remy," stated one of the men as two other grabbed Gambit and Rogue, and hauled them out of their seats.
"Bonjour Julien," replied Gambit, as he took a hold of his staff and extended, before using it to hit the man holding him in the face.
The man grabbed his nose and backed away from Gambit in pain.
Rogue elbowed her captor hard in the ribs, causing him to fall over, gasping for air.
"Borrow this?" asked Rogue as she took Gambit's staff from him.
She then spun around, using the staff to hold herself up, and mule kicked Julien in the chest, sending him flying through the door of the club.
Gambit walked over and leaned against the frame of the now broken door, and looked at Julien with a smirk.
"Thanks!" said Rogue as she handed Gambit his staff back.
"Any time." No sooner had Gambit gotten the words out, then one of the Ripper's from inside the club tackled Gambit to the ground.
Rogue looked up to see two more Rippers come out of the club, before running over and kicking the Ripper off of Gambit.
Gambit quickly got to his feet in time to see the two other Rippers' head toward him. He looked around for a good weapon, before his eyes fell onto a parking meter. Gambit quickly grabbed a hold of the meter, and charged it, until it exploded and sent quarters flying everywhere. The two Rippers threw their arm's up to protect their faces, before turning and running away.
Gambit smiled at his handiwork, but was soon tackled into the wall of the jazz club by Julien. Gambit looked up to see Julien rear back to hit him, but he never did. Instead Julien let go of Gambit and passed out, to reveal Rogue standing with her bare hand outstretched. Rogue groaned, and wobbled a bit, with her hand on her head. Gambit stepped forward, and grabbed Rogue's gloved hand.
"Time to go," said Gambit as he pulled Rogue down a nearby alley.
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"Did you find anything out?" asked Scott when Wolverine returned to the mansion.
"The Cajun's skipped town and hasn't told anyone where he's goin'," replied Wolverine.
"The professor's trying to locate them using Cerebro," said Jean.
There was a slight pause before Kurt and Kitty came rushing into the room.
"Professor X's like totally found them," said Kitty.
"Where are they?" asked Jean.
"New Orleans," said Kurt.
"Go find Storm while we get the jet ready."
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"Look, thanks for your help, really, but now I gotta go and take care of some stuff," said Gambit once he and Rogue were safely away from the Ripper's.
Rogue watched as Gambit turned and started walking away.
"Why didn't you tell me they kidnaped your father?" asked Rogue.
"Because you don't need any more troubles," replied Gambit. "Especially mine."
Rogue hurried after Gambit.
"Listen. I know where they're keepin' your father!" called Rogue.
Gambit stopped and turned to face Rogue.
"You do? Where?"
"Bloodmoon Bayou," said Rogue as she came to stand in front of Gambit. "But you'll never get past their sensors and water mines, so Ahm goin' with you."
"No, no, I'll manage on my own." Gambit began walking away once more.
"Gambit." Rogue caught a hold of Gambit's arm, and he turned to look at her. "Ah had the chance to do something like this before, and Ah didn't. Ah need to do it now."
Gambit looked at Rogue for a while, before sighing.
"All right."
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"We're never going to find them in this," said Scott as he looked at the huge crowd of masked people.
"Judging from that, I'd say they've already come and gone," said Wolverine as he gestured to the broken jazz club door, and the ruined parking meter.
"They've gone to a bayou," said Jean as she tried to sense out Rogue.
"Which one, this place is like swamp land," said Kitty.
"This way," said Wolverine as he headed down the alley.
"How do you know?" asked Storm.
"I can smell it."
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"All this trouble, and Ah thought you didn't like your father," said Rogue from her spot in the boat.
"I don't," replied Gambit. "Just because someone adopts you doesn't make them a parent."
"Yeah . . ."
"Mystique? You mean it wasn't her motherly instincts that lead her to take you in?" asked Gambit with mild sarcasm.
"Let's just say it was my power she wanted to nurture," replied Rogue as she looked off across the bayou.
Gambit sighed.
"You and I, we could write a book about it. Been down the same roads . . ."
"Difference is, you're trying to save your father. It's more then Ah did," said Rogue as the boat slid up to the dock.
"It's a thieves' sort of deal," said Gambit as he tied the boat to the dock, and got out. "Not a family thing."
Gambit helped Rogue out of the boat, and the two walked up the dock, and onto the mainland. The two were a few yards away from the dock when Rogue got another flash of Julien's memories, which caused her to get dizzy and fall over.
"Rogue are you all right?" asked Gambit as he kneeled beside her with his hand on the grass next to her face.
Rogue turned her head to the side, her cheek just barley brushing across Gambit's hand. She opened her eyes in time to see Gambit pass out next to her on the grass.
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"They took a boat from here," said Wolverine as he came to the water's edge. "The trial goes cold."
"Great, now we like just have to search like the entire bayou," said Kitty sarcastically.
"We can take the Blackbird. It'll make things easier," said Scott.
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Gambit woke up to see a very angry Rogue standing over him.
"How dare you!" shouted Rogue.
"What happened?" asked Gambit.
Rogue grabbed a hold of Gambit's lapels and sat on him.
"Your thoughts are in my head! Ah know everything!" shouted Rogue. "You played me!" Rogue stood up and backed away from Gambit.
"Rogue . . ." Gambit stood up.
"Ever since you put me on that train, it's all been apart of a plan!"
"Let me explain–"
"You knew you'd run into someone from the Ripper's at that jazz club!" shouted Rogue. "You knew they'd come after you, and you knew Ahd use my powers to help you! All because you wanted me to absorb information." Rogue turned and started walking back toward the dock.
"I'm sorry Rogue!" called Gambit.
"You used me. Just like everyone else." Rogue said the last part quieter and with a hint of sadness.
"My father's life was at stake!" shouted Gambit as Rogue continued to walk away.
Gambit sighed and hung his head, before turning and continuing back toward the Ripper's headquarters.
Rogue looked back over her shoulder in time to see Gambit disappear into the shadows.
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To Be Continued . . .
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