Eight
Rubbing the back of her neck Rogue wondered again what she'd gotten herself into agreeing to squire the five eight year olds around for two weeks. It wasn't that the kids weren't well behaved, quite the contrary she was pretty sure they were better behaved than she'd been at that age. It was just that even with her invulnerability it was still hard to keep up with them-there was a reason most mutants didn't develop their abilities so young. Good kids or not they were still mischievous and Rogue was trying her best not to smile at the two ringleaders of the latest calamity. Kitty would not be pleased if she let them off too easy-the intangible was terribly afraid of frogs and hadn't appreciated the one they'd left in her bag.
"Desole, Rogue…" Anna-Marie was trying to look innocent despite her demonic eyes and Rogue really had a hard time buying the act-Remy had pulled it too many times for his daughter to not have picked it up.
The second culprit shook his uniform gray head in agreement; though Spork seemed just as repentant as Anna-Marie. "We thought Miss. Kitty would like the frog we got her."
"Oui…" Anna-Marie finished, "She was talkin' ta Mrs. Jean about havin' ta kiss lots of des wowaron ta find a prince…"
Rogue groaned and reminded herself to have a talk with Kitty about the amazing ability of children not to recognize an analogy. Though she had to admit…it was pretty funny. Rogue had wished she could have video taped the moves Kitty had pulled to get away from the small amphibian. "She didn't mean that literally you two." Rogue smiled as she shook her head, "Ya'll know the story of the Frog Prince don't ya?"
Anna-Marie beamed and shook her head her auburn pigtails bouncing, "Mais oui…de Princess kiss de wowaron and he turned inta a Prince and dey live happy for evah."
"That's just a girl story." Spork frowned and brushed some of his khaki coloured hair from his all black eyes.
Before a fight could break out between them Rogue lifted a hand, "But ya'll thought maybe ya'd find Kitty a frog Prince?"
"Oui."
"Yeah."
Oh boy. Rogue bit the insides of her cheeks to prevent the laughter she was barely holding back; the only thing that could have topped this would have been the young girls braiding Wolverine's hair and giving him a makeover. At that visual Rogue had to dig her nails into her palms the bite of pain even through her leather gloves was a distraction from the hilarity of the idea of Wolvie in drag.
"Well Ah know the two of ya didn't mean anythin' by it." She drawled, "So as long as both of ya apologise to Miss. Kitty I suppose I won't have to make ya help with dishes for the next few nights. Ah know she's in the garden with the rest of the group now…if ya do it now then we'll even see about ya getting ya desert after dinner."
The two pint sized miscreants nodded enthusiastically before shooting off in Kitty's general direction. She watched their small forms fade from view before nearly doubling over in laughter. Rogue wished the others were here to have seen this; Wanda would have enjoyed it and she was pretty sure Scott could loose the stick from his rear to enjoy the joke. So loud was Rogue laughing that she didn't hear anyone sneaking up behind her until her 'seventh sense' gave her warning.
"Well Chére," a familiar voice drawled, "It be a good thing to hear you laughin' but Remy has ta know what his petite did."
Rogue nearly jumped but tried to bring herself under control enough to tell Remy the story. She tucked a bit of her hair behind her ears feeling awkward; since he had shown up last night she hadn't known how to deal with him. "Ya daughter and Spork there thought they'd scour the pond and get Kitty a Frog Prince."
"Piotr wouldn't like dat too much hien." Remy smirked and ran a lazy hand through his hair.
"Kitty didn't like it much either Shugah." Rogue shook her head and cleared the cobwebs from her mind enough to realize just how close Remy was to her; she could smell his unique scent-bourbon and tobacco. "The more Ah get to know her the more it's clear Anna-Marie's ya daughter. Ah don't know if Ah should be honoured or offended dat you named her aftah me."
A small smile lifted Remy's lips as he looked in the direction his little girl had run off in, "It was Belle's idea hein. Remy wasn't in a position ta argue wit de femme."
"About that." Rogue took a deep breath; she'd gone over what she'd say to Remy in her mind so many times over the years, "Ah'm sorry about her dyin'."
"Not your fault Chére," Remy replied looking her straight in the eye wondering if she'd mention having attended the funeral, "None of us can change de will of Le Bon Dieu."
Nodding Rogue tried to look away but as always she found herself locked into Remy's gaze. After all these years she'd thought her teenaged crush on him had died with the other fancies of youth. It reared it's ugly head though as she examined the man the boy had become; the sharper more defined features, the careless spill of hair, the eyes that had been able to pull her attention at the most inopportune moments. The promise of mischief just as apparent in his smile as in his daughter's but the fine lines starting around his eyes told Rogue that he'd had his share of troubles since she'd last seen him. "Still," She cursed her voice for cracking ever so slightly when she spoke, "Ah'm sorry. Ya'll have done a wonderful job raising Anna-Marie."
"Not like Remy did it all by hisself Chére," He grinned shaking his head, "Remy has had plenty of help."
"Ah met some of that help," Rogue cracked a smile, "Tante Mattie is just like the stories ya told me. Ah thought ya'll were makin it all up."
Clutching a hand to his chest Remy feigned pain, "Chére ya wound Remy. Do ya think dis poor Cajun boy would evah lie ta ya?"
"If it suited him yes Ah do." Rogue crossed her arms over her chest and narrowed her eyes at him, "But then ya'll always were a Swamp Rat."
"Bon…mais dis ain't much of an insult commin' from a River Rat hein," he shot back quickly, "Mais, Remy gotta say…Ya look tres jolie without all de war paint Chére." He looked her over and shot his familiar lecherous grin, "And ya filled out nice too."
"Ah should have known ya'd never change Gumbo," Rogue did her best not to blush at the compliment; she still had issues believing people when they told her that she was good looking. She supposed it was from spending so many years trying to hide herself from the world. "It's like a law of nature that ya have ta be a perv."
Once more Remy affected an innocent look; one that mirrored Anna-Marie's perfectly, "What you talkin' bout Chére? Remy be a responsible family homme."
"Would the eight year old daughter of a responsible family man be able to place a frog in someone's bag?"
"Not Remy's fault de Chaton can't look after her things."
"While it was on her shoulder." Rogue finished enjoying the chagrined look on his face but she didn't miss the small flash of pride in his little girl's ability, "Ah didn't think so. Ain't she a little young for tha Guild?"
He shook his head and looked almost rueful, "Non, dey start learnin' de basics early. She's makin' Remy feel like an vieux."
"That's because ya are an old man Gumbo." Rogue smirked and put one hand on her hip to look up at him, "Ya gotta be pushin' thirty now."
Remy faked slapping Rogue upside the head knowing that the Southern Belle would dodge before he could actually hit her, "Watch de slap Chére. Remy only be vingt-six."
"Ya'll are gonna have ta try harder than that if you want to catch me Swamp Rat," Rogue shot back laughing as she started hovering in mid air just out of his reach.
He made a grab for her ankle and Rogue set off trying to stay out of the thief's grasp not realizing that from inside they were being watched.
Sighing Joseph couldn't believe his eyes, in the years he'd known Rogue he'd never seen her so…carefree. It was a little disconcerting. Not that he thought she was overly serious, Joseph had seen first hand just how deep his Southern Belle's funny bone went. More often than not she and Kurt were behind any pranks pulled on the other members of the X-Men. But the way she was interacting with the demon eyed man was something different all together. He frowned trying to decide if it was a good thing or not.
The door to the library swung open startling Joseph away from the window, a faint blush appeared on his cheeks-he didn't want anyone to think he didn't trust Rogue and watched her every move. Turning he relaxed himself purposefully and pushed some of his long white hair away from his face, "Hello Jean."
"Hiding out from all the munchkins?" the extremely pregnant redhead smiled as she moved slowly into the room a large novel in hand.
Joseph couldn't help but smile a little as he used his magnetic ability to pull one of the large chairs out and closer to her, "Something like that. Refereeing breakfast made me wonder why I didn't go with Scott and Wolverine on that mission to Genosha."
"Sentinels are easier to stop than a bunch of hungry kids." Jean laughed lightly as she eased herself into the chair looking forward to some much-needed quiet time. As she sat she caught sight of Remy trying to catch Rogue on the lawn. "Well…good to see nothing's changed with those two."
Perking up Joseph pulled up a chair for himself and sat near Jean; for some reason he wanted to know just why Rogue seemed so at ease with the stranger. "Oh? Rogue knows him?"
"That's Gambit…Remy Lebeau." Jean began not showing any sign that she realized what Joseph was doing-but he was sure she knew, "Like Piotr he came to Bayville as one of the Acolytes. He stayed as an X-Man for a while before he went back home to New Orleans. He and Rogue were close."
Unable to stop himself Joseph narrowed his eyes and frowned, "How close?"
"The best of friends." Jean smiled softly and a rubbed her bulging stomach absently; she did her best to ignore the small amount of jealousy she felt with his curiosity. "Remy's a member of the Thieves Guild in New Orleans…he'd been here for a few months when he had to go back."
"Why?"
"I don't know all of it but Rogue told me the basics," Jean decided she'd already shared enough of the story; besides she was pretty sure Joseph deserved to know the whole truth. Or at least the edited version of it-Jean was sure he didn't want to know the part about Rogue loving the other man. She sighed feeling more an a little sorry for Joseph wondering if Kitty and Wanda had taken his feelings into mind with their plan two reunite the Southerners. "As a peace treaty with the other big Guild-the Assassins-he'd been engaged to the daughter of their leader since he was a kid. There was some new fighting and his brother was almost killed. Belladonna…his 'fiancée' came up here to give him the news. Remy left the X-Men and went back to New Orleans to marry her."
Hearing that the handsome stranger had a wife of his own relaxed the tension building in Joseph's shoulders. "Is his wife here with him?"
"No." Jean paled a bit remembering how Belle had died, "She died from complications after giving birth to their daughter eight years ago. You've met her…little Anna-Marie. She's one of the kids at the summer camp."
Everything else the telepath said faded into the background of Joseph's mind. He loved Rogue deeply and trusted her completely but something didn't feel right about this Remy Lebeau returning to the fold.
Look Ma! Two updates in one week! Surely this is a miracle! Lookey here I've got over a thousand hits and only 51 reviews...hmmm...me thinks the math isn't adding up right. Not that I don't adore my faithful reviewers but...what's wrong with the rest of you? Please...please please...review...I swear that little purple button won't give you an electric shock if you hit it.
And the shoutouts go to the loyal...
IvyZoe - Hehehe...Rogue doesn't have things under control...not yet...Good old Joey has been working on something for that. Hehehe...plot twist? Hell yes. But to make up for that I've given you some Romy banter...enjoy.
Silence is Deafening - Woot! A new reviewer...welcome to my mad house. Muahahaha. Thank you muchly for the praise...I work hard to keep people guessing...though...I'm being a lot nicer in this one than previous stories...The Angst Wand has been set to low for the time being.
Les723 - Another Newbie! Throws confetti As you wish. But trust me...It ain't gonna be easy...this wouldn't be a krac fic if Remy and Rogue got to do things the easy way.
Ishy - Hehehehe...Funny thing about turning legal...I never got ID'd til I was over 19. Funny? Yes...At 25 I still get carded on a regular basis...it's annoying. But I promise I will have a few in your name over this weekend...no worries about that. Anna-Marie did like Joseph...and will continue to...he just makes her plan that much harder...hehehe. But no worries. She'll deal with him. I love pulpy juice too...and I live alone so no one can swipe it...suckahs! Yes...i thoguht long and hard about how to have Rogue react...it was why that chapter took so long to get out...I figured acting as if nothing bad had happened was best. I have my reasons for why she was there for the funeral...the big hint is that she didn't know Belle had died. Hope this made you even more twitchy. Muahaha
AM Bookworm - So that's why I had randsom letters comming for my muse...I knew it. You think this is depressing? Oh you have no idea how depressing I could make this. But it won't be that bad. I promise not to make many people cry. And hte adding is like fractions only not boring as dirt. Hehehe...I love Piotr...he and Kitty are fun to write. But I've always enjoyed his friendship with Remy too for the same reasons-opposites attract. Reminds me of my best friend and I. Nope, I'm trying to be as faithful as I can be to the source material...though Rogue at the funeral is a bit of a departure...but I couldn't see her letting him go and not seeing if he was happy.
Simba317 - Hotness. Where in God's Green Earth are you stuck living that it's snowing already? OMG. I hate snow with a passion. Thankfully, Toronto doesn't get that much. Whew. Ack...tell me about it. Removes the knife from back. I know...I love the way kids see hte world...like anything's possible...then we get old and jaded. It's fun writing Anna-Marie cause she's still pure. LOL...awww...I wasn't trying to make Jo-Jo hateful in this...he's an okay guy...just not the guy for Rogue. LOL...oh yeah...I know girls like Kitty...they take it serious when they matchmake. I stopped reading comics a while ago...i couldn't handle what was happening...though House of M sounds good. No eloping yet but hey look...they actually interacted in the present.
Hippiegurl - Fast enough? Like I said...I'm being nice on this fic...the cliffhangers aren't nearly as bad as Cypher's were. Or even with Time After Time (Which I will update this month). But here ya go...not too bad of one here.
EE's Skysong - Blonde is a state of mind not a hair colour. I am mentally Blonde sometimes. AWWWW...You think I have mad skillz! That's seriously the nicest thing ever...I'm really self conscious about my writing. I think I blow chunks. Thats just me though. hug Also glad you like Joe...I'm trying to keep him as a not so bad guy in this. Just kind of...not Remy. Teehehehe...I love Piotrness. I'm thinking of doing a Piotr centric fic about how he got stuck as an Acolyte. Hmmm...but first things first. Seriously though...read the Cypher arc if you want major Piotr action...
Naemis - You review I update...it's a beautiful thing.