Disclaimer: "It's hard work being apathetic AND ignorant."

(An: And here we get to John and Wanda... this must be the seventh time I've tried to type this up.)

Remy spotted the tattoo on Rogue's back by accident. He was getting more firewood when he glanced up.

Rogue had let the shambles of her shirt and Remy's coat slip down her back. From shoulderblade to shoulderblade her skin turned inky black.

Remy dropped the sticks he was holding and walked over to her. He traced the patter with one finger, not quite touching her. "Do you mind?" he asked quietly.

Rogue shifted his coat, giving him a full view of her back. She sat up a little straighter as he traced the blank line on her back. "It's a map," he announced after a minute.

Rogue turned her head and looked at him. "What?"

"Someone tattooed a map on your back."

"Weird." Rogue turned back to the fire.

"Kurt, come here," said Remy.

Kurt came, but reluctantly, not seeming to like having to stare at a girl's back. "Was?"

"Look at this," said Remy, gently tapping a star in the upper left corner of rogue's back. "I think this is the elves's citadel. And down here's where we found Rogue."

"And..." said Kitty.

"Et this means we finally know where she's from. It means we can take her to people- er, elves who really know who she is. Chere?"

Rogue shrugged. "I don't really have anywhere else to go, now do I?"

Kitty broke in again. "But how far is it from the palace?"

"About a day's detour," said Remy, shrugging. "At the rate we're going, we'll get to the palace in two days."

"Well, all right then," said Kitty, sated.

Kurt wasn't, though. "How do you know?"

Remy was copying the map onto a piece of paper. He frowned. "I've, uh, been there."

Kurt and Kitty gaped at him. "You've been to the elves' citadel?"

"And you never told us?" Kitty agreed.

"There's a lot you don't know about me." Remy rolled up the copy of the map, and absently resettled his coat around Rogue's shoulders. He refused to say anything more on the matter.

&&&

The next day found them finally out of the forest at the walls of a city. "The capital," Remy announced. "We're making great time." Kitty nudged Kurt, who sighed, and waved his hand across his face. To Rogue's amazement, his true appearance vanished to be replaced by an image of a perfectly normal person.

"It's called a glammer, mein Dame," said Kurt to Rogue, and then to Remy, "Do we have time to eat?"

"Are you ever not hungry?" Kitty replied. Kurt opened his mouth and Kitty shook her head. "No. Don't answer that."

Remy rolled his eyes and brought them to a small bar. "It might be wise for you," he pointed at Rogue, "to put your hood up and hide your flash."

"My flash?"

Remy pointed at her necklace. Rogue promptly tucked it under her shirt and pulled up her hood.

They walked in and took a table in the back. A while after ordering, Rogue said, "Somebody's staring at us."

Remy looked around and did a double take when he saw the gawker, a redhead in nondescript clothes. "No way," he said, eyes widening. "No way in hell."

The redhead tapped the woman he was sitting with and said something, point excitedly. The woman rolled her eyes and went back to her book. The guy came over and slammed his hands down on the table, grinning.

"Didn't think they let trash like you in here," Remy commented, returning the grin.

"And a good day to you too, LeBeau. Who're your friends?"

Remy introduced them.

"The name's John, John Allerdyce." He stuck out his hand to Kurt, who stared at it like it might bite him.

"I have a rash," said Kurt, grinning nervously. "Real bad."

John blinked. "Good for you."

Remy nodded back at the woman at John's table. "Who's the femme?"

Although it hadn't seemed possible, John's grin got wider. "Wanda Maximoff."

Kitty choked on her drink.

"So you've heard of her, then?"

Remy gaped at him. "How'd you end up with her?"

John blushed. "It ain't anything like that- she saved my skin and somehow I ended up her servant." He held up his palm, which had a thin scar on it.

"I knew the only femme who'd be interested in you would be crazy," Remy commented.

John backhanded him, red agian. "It's. Not. Like. That!"

Remy just smirked.

"How do you two know each other, anyway?" Rogue interjected.

"We worked together once," Remy explained. "For a crazy homme."

"He's Wanda's dad, in fact," said John.

"I can see where she gets it from, then."

Rogue raised one eyebrow.

"Wanda Maximoff is quite possibly the most powerful witch this side of the ocean. She was put in an asylum when she was little because she couldn't control her powers."

"You make it sound like a bad thing," said John, reproachful.

"Well, to a crazy guy, asylums are home, so it must seem rosy to you..."

"Oh, come off it."

This was apparently when Wanda got bored of waiting, because that's when she came over. "Are you done yet?" she asked John. He shook his head. Wanda sighed and twitched her fingers at a chair. It came sliding over and she straddled it backwards. "Ok, LeBeau, what's the deal?"

Remy looked as innocent as possible (which admittedly wasn't very). "No deal. Nothing to report."

"Oh, yeah, I'm sure," said Wanda, raising one eyebrow. "Tell the truth for once in your life."

Remy rolled his eyes. "Just doing my civic duty..."

"Elaborate."

Remy sighed and nodded at Kitty, who rolled down her sleeve to reveal the mark.

"Well, well, well," said Wanda. "Isn't that... interesting."

Kitty rolled down her sleeve and Kurt said, "No, it's not."

"Calm down there, lover-boy." She turned her attention to Remy as Kurt turned slightly red. "I want in."

"In on what?"

"Whatever you're doing, genius. I'm bored, and this sounds like fun."

Remy muttered something that probably wasn't very nice, but said, "Oh, all right," anyway.

"Goody," said Wanda. She grabbed John's arm. "C'mon, we gotta pack."

"Oh, boy, this is gonna be great," Remy muttered.

(That was shorter than usual, but that always happens when I write out my chapters. And becides, this was a good place to stop.)