(Ten)

Logan gasped and wheezed as he slowly became aware. He had been out cold for almost two days and was only just now waking up. He had been watched over in amazement while his body healed and his flesh regenerated. He was far from recovered and wouldn't be for some time, even his healing factor had limits. He had been dreaming most of the time, his brain bathed in a fog of bright white light. He thought for sure he must have died and wept then, cursing the thought that he'd found someone to love only to die before they had any time. As he awoke, there was only one thought on his mind. "Karen...?" he wheezed. His chest was so heavy and he coughed from his words, unable to breathe.

He felt Henry near him and a glass was pressed to his lips. He took a sip of water and felt it slide down his burning throat. Ah...that was better. He opened his eyes a little. He couldn't see much, just a large blue blur.

"Karen?" he called out again.

"She's sleeping," Henry replied. "She spent most of the past two days at your side. I'll wake her in a moment. Just relax."

Beast had had a very busy couple of days. He couldn't recall the last time he had seen Logan so badly abused. He had missed out on seeing Logan set on fire by Sabretooth and was grateful for it on so many levels. Logan was uncouth, at times rude and arrogant, but he had been on this team for so long and showed his heroism so solidly from the first day he'd arrived, all else had been forgotten. It had been difficult patching Wolverine back together, worrying if this might finally be the end of the man, but at the same time, Henry found himself peeking under the bandages, wanting to see that flesh grow back by itself. It had fascinated him endlessly, though it made him feel a little guilty. He knew Logan was a person and not a specimen. He was glad when most of Logan's skin sealed itself over and the healing was done on the inside where it was hidden, it kept him from temptation. He then devoted his time to bringing Logan whatever comforts he had available – keeping him warm and hydrated and clean and as free from pain as possible.

Wolverine had been oblivious to the whole thing. He recalled very little of what had happened to him, but some blurry images were coming to mind. He recalled seeing Remy's face spattered with blood, forgetting that it had been his own. "Cajun...?"

"He's fine. Take it easy," Henry replied, patting his shoulder a little.

"I-I... was...sh-shot..?"

"Yes. I've had the pleasure of removing most of the bullets. I could have taken out more, but heh, you know, the flesh they went into was no longer attached to you," Beast joked wryly. "The things you put me through, my friend."

"Cajun?" Wolverine repeated, his foggy brain trying to focus. What had happened to him? He remembered the bank and then there was some kind of blurry nightmare. He'd been trapped with a monster. Impossible to think he'd been this injured and no one else was as well.

"Sorry, he didn't have a single one. None of the others did."

Logan grunted, puzzled and coughed. "How?"

"La ShaRain natay LaRoo," Remy said in accented Siskan from beside him.

"What?" Logan wheezed, turning his head in his direction. He blinked woozily and saw a Remy shaped blur. He blinked again and the image came in to focus. It had been a couple of days and Remy had slept well thanks to a big blast of tranquilizers Henry had shot him up with each night. He felt good and it showed on his face. He was washed and dressed casually in a loose T-shirt and jeans.

"My Guardian Angel," Remy repeated in English.

"Kimble..?"

"Loves me," Remy finished for him, a small smile stealing across his lips. "Too bad 'e don' feel so sure 'bout you, ey? P'etetre, it's time you two made up."

Logan coughed and turned away. "Asshole."

"Leave us alone a minute, 'Enry?" Remy requested. "I wanna say sumptin' private."

"All right. Just don't upset him too much. He's still pretty weak."

"Sometime's dat's de best time. When 'e's too tired t' turn away."

Henry nodded and left without speaking.

"I all ready know what yer gonna say."

"Do you? I don t'ink so, mon ami. Time ta get rid of what's come 'tween you an Kimble, Logan. Zander, 'e lock 'imself up wit you, blown you' all to bits. De Punisher, 'e spank you wit four clips of top caliber bullets, patron. Dat's a man wit sumptin' on 'is mind. How about you tell me what it is?"

"I ain't got no clue," Wolverine lied. He was coming back to reality now. The fog was lifting.

"Liar. What's your dark secret, Logan?" Remy demanded, using Anya's words. He was all done with waiting. He wanted to find Kimble and decided the best way to do that was start at the beginning. The conversation he'd had with the Professor had given him an idea on just how to do that.

Wolverine coughed again. "Ferget it. I ain't discussin' that with you."

"Talkin' to me is like talkin' to 'im. Gambit been inside 'is 'ead. Gambit know what dat boy is t'inkin'," Remy said ominously, removing his gloves.

"I don't think so," Logan said warily, backing away against the headboard. He didn't like the way Gambit was looking at him now, but was too badly injured to go far.

Gambit came very close to Logan, sitting down on the bed. He leaned over his teammate, pinning him down with his eyes. He placed his now bare hands on Logan's shoulders, laying his body across Logan's chest to use his weight to hold him down. Logan was much too weak to resist him. Remy bored into Logan's wide and protesting eyes with his own, seeking that which Kimble had found. He put his face very close to Logan's, their lips almost touching, and breathed his air, smelling the fluids that still leaked from him.

Logan squirmed and tried to pull away, but he had become mesmerized, ensnared by the strangest of sensations coming from Gambit's bare hands on his skin. He could feel vibrations coming from Remy and flowing into his body. It wasn't unpleasant, but frightened him because he had felt this before when Kimble had kissed him. He was in no condition to resist the spell and part of him howled inside because he knew Remy was going to find out.

Remy had let go with his mind, using it consciously for the first time, willing this to happen. He chose not to fight what Kimble had done to him any longer, but now tried to use it to get what he wanted. He was demanding Logan's dark secret, the one that had shattered Kimble like glass, and he would have it. He looked into Logan with all of Kimble's insight and intuition, using his eyes and his heightened sense of touch. He shivered slightly as Logan's shine burst out all around him, whispering its secrets in a voice so low he almost couldn't make it out. He felt it as Logan began to tremble and sensed his fear. It was the contact he was afraid of. The intimate contact...

Being very sensitive and clever himself before Kimble had mysteriously opened this door in his brain and given him this not always so wonderful gift, Remy managed to figure out the rest. He jerked away with a startled gasp, bringing a hand to his mouth. "Oh! Je suis de'sole! I'm so sorry... Christ!" He crossed himself quickly without thinking. He wasn't really a practicing Catholic, but years of Catholic school was hard to ignore.

Logan sat up stiffly, freed now. He ignored the pain from his injuries, and stood up with a loud grunt. He backed Remy up against the wall, his teeth breaking out in a silent angry sneer. He popped a hand full of claws and brought them right up to Remy's eyes. "You breathe a word of it to anyone...I'll do ya worse than I did to the other guy, you understandin' me?"

Remy composed himself and nodded. "What did you say to Kimble, Logan?"

"The truth."

Remy cocked his head, regaining some of his earlier confidence. "Kimble would never 'urt you dat way. What you t'inkin'?"

"Really?" Logan wheezed with angry sarcasm. "What he done tells me diff'rent."

"What did 'e do?"

Logan backed off, sheathing his claws, and sat back down on the bed heavily. He was exhausted and couldn't stand up anymore. He ignored the question and squirmed back into the bed, covering up.

Remy continued to scrutinize Logan, knowing he would have to pull teeth on this one. "Gambit keeps 'is secrets. None of dis is goin' anywhere."

Logan closed his eyes and grunted a laugh. He gave it up, knowing that in his weakened state, Remy could just rip it from him anyway. He didn't want Gambit that close to him again. It was unnerving. He chuckled as he relaxed and said, "He kissed me and I almost bit his face off."

Remy snickered, not needing anything more. "Was 'e high?"

"Yeah. That plasma shit. He was really wasted."

"I tol' you 'e wouldn't 'urt you. Let me guess, you was all beat up an 'e wanted to take your pain."

Logan shuddered with revulsion at the memory, he couldn't help it. Gambit's use of the same phrase only added to Gambit's credibility when he said he knew Kimble well. "He won't be tryin' it again any time soon."

" 'E's not tryin' to 'urt you. 'E only wants you to like 'im."

Logan snorted. "Oh? Like he wanted Bruce to like him? I saw the files. That was just sick how he was shovin' himself on Bruce like that."

"Bruce was playin' 'im. Playin' 'im bad. You can't fuck wit Kimble when 'e's like dat. 'E was self destructin', just like 'e is now."

"Yer boy ain't never stopped self destructin', Gumbo. Yer just too hung up on him ta see it. What about Holly and Bobby? You got some kind of excuse for them, too?"

"Dat one's easy. 'E was reachin' out. You put 'im in a box. 'E was reachin' out to the first t'ing 'e saw dat didn' look at 'im like you do." Gambit waited a moment to see if Logan would argue, but the man just lay there quiet. "All 'e wants is what you never gave 'im. Acceptance. Comprenez? 'E needs dat more dan de sex and all de playin' around 'e does. I know dis, you know I do! You seen what happened to me! Dat's what 'e was showin' me in dose files, not 'ow great it was bein' fucked in de ass!" he finished in an angry, trembling voice as he was suddenly overcome with emotion.

Logan looked at him sharply. He hadn't taken the time to fully digest what he had seen there up on that screen when Kimble's files had been played back for all to see. Logan realized now that to a point, Remy had walked partway down the same road he had been taken with Crazy John. Gambit had been taken against his will and subjected to treatment that was hard for a straight man to swallow. Difference was, Remy's little trip had been laced with Kimble's respect and trust, even a little love. It was Kimble's intention to pleasure Gambit along with the lesson he had been trying to teach. It hadn't been meant to hurt and maim as Logan's was. Wolverine had seen the playback, saw how Gambit had reacted when the pleasure room file was done. He had seen the fear and bewilderment that had been on Gambit's face without fully understanding what had just happened to his teammate. Yet when Kimble had touched him after, when they lay on the grass, Gambit hadn't moved away from his impromptu host. Kimble had reached out to Remy with love and the Cajun had accepted it, accepted what had just been done to him. He had to admire Gambit's courage.

He swallowed heavily and let Remy have his moment. "All right, I'm listenin'."

Remy sniffed and looked away. His hands shook a little as he wiped the wetness from his eyes. "All 'e wants is acceptance. Unconditional acceptance. You gave it to Fallen and you gave it to Seth. You even gave it to Molly de firs' day she came but you never gave it to 'im, not once. Dat ain't fair! He don' want your love, 'e don' want you to fuck him, 'e just want you to look at 'im wit your eyes an not your fists. See him, Logan. Look at me, an' see 'im. We are de same."

Logan nodded slowly and closed his eyes. "We have to find him. Creed's gonna give him over to Jael. Who knows what'll happen to him after that."

"How we gonna find Jael?"

"You were right about the Morlock tunnels. I was there, Jael took me while you were gone. I'd know the smell anywhere."

"Jael took you?" Gambit gasped and stepped back a pace. There hadn't been any time for anyone to bring him up to date on all that had happened while he had been gone and he had no clue about any of this. The thought of Jael nabbing them at will like this was unsettling.

"Don't worry, Henry checked me out. I didn't bring home any little presents. He wanted to learn everything I knew about Kimble so he had a telepath go through my head. I was there long enough to think you were right to go lookin' where ya were. I wanna go back, see if maybe I can figure out how he managed to give you the slip."

"You want some comp'ny? Promise not to bring no bad guys wit me dis time," Remy joked weakly, keeping his eyes down.

"You can run the tunnels with me any time, boy. I told ya b'fore. Yer debt's been paid. Speakin' of which, you get Kyle?"

Remy shook his head. "Saby wasted 'im. He stay alive long enough to give me dis." He held up a bunch of keys.

"What's that?"

"Safe deposit box. He give me de number, said de key is on 'ere."

"You tell Fury?"

"Non. Wanted to see what was in dere firs'. See if it was a waste of time."

"Let me talk to Fury. I gotta give him somethin' for helpin' us. He's probably all pissed off."

"Fair enough. Dere's a lotta keys 'ere."

"Maybe we'll just have to see how many locks they go into." Logan said with a mischievous grin.

Gambit grinned. "I like yo' style, patron."

"We're gonna get Kimble back."

"Gambit knows, he knows. Jus' 'ope it don' take too long. Dat boy worries me sumptin' awful. Who knows what Creed's gonna do to 'im fore 'e 'ands 'im over," Remy said, retreating. He paced a little, worried now. He was still that parent who's child has been stolen from him. At least he knew Kimble was alive.

Logan sighed and closed his eyes. He was filled with flashbacks from his service days. He knew Creed pretty well. Well enough to know whatever Creed might do to Kimble, it was probably going to be pretty bad. He casually wondered if Kimble could tolerate being raped, if Kimble would see forced sex that way or if he'd just go along with it. He didn't voice his thoughts but said instead, "Maybe Creed'll hand him over quick, take his money and bug out. He ain't one ta stay in one place too long. Got too many folks lookin' for him. Fury'd give all his teeth ta have that boy in his lock up."

Remy nodded, still pacing. He made a vow to keep looking, that he would never give up until Kimble was home. He looked up as Henry returned with Karen and then slipped out, letting Logan have time with his girl. They had said all they needed to anyway --- for now. There was more, he knew that. Knowledge of a crime against Logan wasn't enough for Kimble to break. Not that and a bite to the face. No, Logan had said something afterwards. Something bad. Remy knew he would have to find out, but it could wait. Now Logan needed time to heal. If the furball didn't cough it up, well, maybe he would just lay his hands on him again. Maybe Kimble's little gift had its uses after all.

Gambit went out into the hallway, surprised to see a small group of X-men gathered there. They broke up as he came out, leaving him alone with Warren who was still hanging around the Lab, sniffing around for news on Logan. The two men eyed each other warily. "You put up quite a fight de other day, mon ami," Remy said, remembering the battle that had taken place over Bishop's safehouse. "Kicked some serious ass."

"Thanks. Nice to know I can still kick some butt when I have to." Warren replied, being oddly thoughtful. "I'm sorry about Kimble. I'm sure it was painful to have to leave him behind."

You 'ave no idea, mon ami. "Yeah, well. We gonna get him back."

"I heard you guys thought maybe Jael was hiding out in the old Morlock tunnels. That...that you went over every inch of them looking for him. That must have been...difficult."

Remy cocked his head, surprised to hear Warren speak to him with such candor. Warren was shifting uncomfortably. Gambit knew warren to be like Cyclops, the emotionless stoic leader who never revealed anything. But now Gambit could see that Angel was having a difficult time with his feelings, flexing his wings and fidgeting.

"Sumptin' on yo' mind, Angel?"

Warren shrugged, trying to make it look casual. "It's just that I know you wouldn't have done it if Kimble didn't mean anything to you. People around here say that you don't care about anybody... maybe it isn't really true."

Remy's eyes widened. Warren Worthington the Third, millionaire playboy and one of Xavier's darlings, acknowledging that the notorious thief, Remy LeBeau might not be so bad? Good grief, what was this world coming to? "Don' b'lieve everyt'ing you 'ear, flyboy," Remy teased, anxious to maintain his scandalous reputation. He wouldn't be a LeBeau without it.

"Well, if you need any help...if you find anything out... I'd be happy to help you. No one deserves to be in Sabretooth's company. He's...he's..."

"We bot' know Gambit knows just what 'e is," Remy replied stiffly, being harsher than he intended. It's just that he was so worried Kimble would come to harm and still felt guilty for having failed him again.

Warren gave him a pained smile. "I guess you would at that." He straightened and started to walk away.

"Espe're! Wait! Wait..." Remy stammered, and grinned when the winged man turned back to look at him. "T'anks fo' your offer. I'm sure dat's one favor we gonna cash in. Merci."

Warren smiled at him and it softened the look of his face. He was just a blond mutant, not much older than Remy himself, and just as fragile. "No problem."

Gambit watched him leave, thinking on just how strange life was. He had lost someone who was very dear to him from his own stupidity, been rejected by his girl --- again --- yet was finding people reaching out to him from directions he hadn't expected. Was he changing, or were they? Maybe they'd been there all this time and he was the one not paying attention. It was true that feeling the vibrations of the folks around him was making him more aware of them and what they were feeling. Kimble's gift, the burden and the new skill on his ladder of growth. A curse and a joy perhaps? Kimble seemed to enjoy it, but the pilot had much better control of it than he had.

Kimble. Kimble. Kimble. Lord have mercy, the vacancy there in his heart was huge. He paced some more, stopping at the soda machine. He rapped a button and took his can, his eyes seeming to notice the redness of the machine as if for the first time. Kimble had loved red. Remy shivered a little. He closed his eyes, bringing the ice cold can of soda to the back of his neck and leaving it there, feeling its coldness seep into him. He concentrated, hard, thinking that maybe if he just reached out far enough, he could see where Kimble was. Where you at, little brother? Gambit needs to hear from you so bad, he couldn't help but think. His inquiry brought him no answers, nor did his meager use of power.

He sighed and opened the can, drinking it down quickly. He belched, long and deep and turned when he heard Molly standing in the doorway of the gym laughing at him. Her eyes were bright with amusement.

"You like dat, chere? You should see what comes outta my ass. It's a real treat."

I'm sure. She signed, still laughing. What are you doing out here all alone?

"Not much, just t'inkin'."

You look so sad. Maybe you're thinking too much.

"Mebbe. You got sumtpin' better in mind?" he mouth responded before his brain could catch it. It was an automatic reply, one that was hardwired in his brain and beyond his ability to remove. Molly was a girl sure, but she was so young. He figured she couldn't be more than sixteen.

Molly just laughed again. Sure. X-Files are on in fifteen minutes. Care to join me?

Remy cocked his head, intrigued. X-files was one of his favorite shows and something he used to enjoy back when he had a semi-normal life. Back before the ill fated trip to Cerise and the rough tumbling of Kimble into his life. Truth was, he could really use the distraction. "Sure, chere. But only if we make one of dem little frozen pizza thingies. Gambit's hungry."

Only if I get to put extra pepperoni on it. They never put enough, you know.

Gambit was grinning now. A girl after his own heart. "Si bien, petite," he replied and gave her his arm. She took it and they headed to the elevator, giggling a little now. They had their pizza and watched their show, having a good time. His spirits were lifted by doing this simple thing, just enjoying TV show with a friend, and it dispelled the gloom in his heart more than any of Henry's drugs. His thoughts kept straying back to Kimble now and again, in spite of his fun. He wished he knew where the pilot was and prayed that he wasn't in too much trouble. He could have no way of knowing that Kimble's life would now be forever changed once more and his right along with it.

To be continued in Master, Beloved.