(Three)

Remy bolted awake in his bed, drenched in sweat. He gasped and heaved for air, trembling violently. He'd had another stupid fucking nightmare. They were coming more and more often. It was always the same - he would pick up some gorgeous girl and they would be making love. He would be groovin', diggin' it like nothing else, and then just when he would be ready to climax, his new found empathy would get out of control. He would freak out and then all the stuff in the room would explode, charged by his bio-kinetic energy. In this case, the girl herself had exploded, blowing chunks and gore all over him. It was a Seamus flashback, no doubt.

Remy fumbled at his light and snatched at the pack of cigarettes there on his night stand. Henry's admonition against smoking hadn't lasted. He had stopped taking the anti-depressants, too. It didn't seem like they helped much, he was moody and sullen most of the time now with or without the damn medicine. What he needed wouldn't come from a pill. He needed a good honest lay, one without fear. It didn't seem like it was going to happen any time soon. He didn't have the confidence to try, not just yet. He was terrified he would injure someone. He had never killed anyone with his power, not directly, and had no urge to change that.

These thoughts swamped him and he was filled with a dark cloud of depression. "Fuck dis!" he snarled and got dressed in a T-shirt and a pair of loose sweatpant cut off shorts. He grabbed a bottle of Jack Daniels from his dresser and walked out.

Remy loved the Mansion's widow's peak. It was high and solitary and he was pretty much the only one who went there. He went up the small flight of stairs and out into the night. He was startled to find the space occupied, Molly was there, sitting up on the wide railing and looking out over the grounds. She was dressed in light purple pajamas, comfortable in the late summer air.

She turned and looked at him, her eyes wide with fear from his unannounced entry. Even in the moonless night, Gambit's sharp eyes were keen enough to see she had been crying. All of his gloomy thoughts vanished as he held up a cautionary hand and said softly, "Easy, dere, chere. Gambit ain't gonna hurt ya, girl."

Molly wiped at her face, hopelessly embarrassed. I'm okay, she signed, keeping her eyes down.

Remy came out onto the peak and sat next to her on the railing. Another thing he loved about the peak was the nice wide railing, it just begged to be sat upon and kept company. He smiled at her. "Looks like Gambit ain't de only one losin' sleep dis night. Si bien, Gambit could use de company."

Molly returned his smile. She'd had a nightmare herself and had come up here to get away. Where before she had only wanted to be alone, she was now grateful Remy had come. She liked his company. What's that? she asked, pointing to the bottle.

"It's my buddy Jack. You want some?" he asked, not caring in the least that she was so clearly underage. He was never one to pay much mind to rules, not this thief.

Is it good?

Gambit snickered. "Now dat's a matter of opinion. Jus' cause Gambit likes it don' mean it's good. 'Sides, he's in it more fo' de aftereffect, not what it taste like goin' down, eh?"

Remy cracked the bottle and drank a shot, feeling the fire of it warm his belly. He handed her the bottle, testing her courage. She frowned a little at the smell, but took a big swallow like Remy had. Her eyes widened and she coughed and spluttered, gagging.

Remy laughed, enjoying this immensely. Newbies, what a thrill. "Wow, chere. You gaspin' louder dan one of dem whales done washed up on de shore! You okay, petite?" He patted her back, snickering.

Yeah, great. Just fine, she signed, still coughing but laughing now. It tasted horrible, but she liked the way it had warmed her up inside.

Remy took the bottle back and wiped the mouth, she had coughed all over it. He took another big hit and grinned at her, all proud of himself that he had taken it down so easy.

She humphed at him and took it back.

"Okay, chere. Is you funeral," he said with a grin.

Braver now, she knocked back the bottle again, drinking a good sized shot.

" 'Ey, easy dere. You gonna git all drunk, you take it down too fast. It's cool you drinkin' it down an' all, but Gambit don' wanna see ya pukin' all over de roof now, y' hear?"

Molly laughed, happy now. She had managed to keep this hit down as well, but was feeling a little buzzed. She had never really drunk alcohol before and had no tolerance. She did not possess a healing factor like dear old Dad. She pointed at Remy's cigarettes, but he shook his head. "No, way, petite. Dat's one bad habit you ain't gettin' from me. Death on a stick, dese."

Then why do you smoke?

Gambit shrugged. "Don' really know. Guess I got some kinda death wish or sumptin'. It real 'ard to quit. Pretty stupid, huh?"

Yeah, she signed, smiling a bit. A moment later she added, Why are you so sad all the time?

Remy balked, startled by the question. She had been the one up here crying after all. He shrugged and tried to hide his pain. "Gambit lost sumptin' dat was precious to 'im. Ain't gonna be happy 'til 'e gets it back."

Is it that Kimble guy? The one everyone is so upset about?

"Oui. Me an' him, we was good friends."

Things had quieted here at the house, but Remy still wasn't quite well. He had watched as Logan recovered from the Punisher's abuse, the last question in his mind left unanswered. Yes, he knew now what Logan's secret was, but it wasn't enough. It didn't explain Kimble's breakdown nor Zander's brutal punishment. Remy wasn't a complete idiot. He could put two and two together. Logan had been raped sometime in his past and reacted badly when Kimble had tried to kiss him. Logan freaked and words had come out his mouth, bad words. Logan hadn't confessed to what exactly he'd said and Remy had been biding his time, under orders from Henry to let Wolverine heal.

Still, Remy suspected what had gone on. He had asked himself, what could Logan say that would make Kimble shatter? Kimble already knew of Logan's dislike for him. "I hate you, you perverted little asshole" wasn't going to be enough. No, it would have to be something worse than that. He trembled at the thought. He knew Sheyman's admonition, "Never take without asking." If Logan had accused the Lover of rape, that might just be the trigger for Kimble's breakdown. But would a stolen kiss be enough for Logan to say such a thing? No, there had to be more. Holly. It had to be Holly. Logan just didn't understand Kimble had been reaching out, even after he had tried to explain it. Logan was stubborn, he just didn't want to hear it. His mind had been made up. Kimble had been condemned, bring in the accused, the hanging will now begin.

Wolverine's words had been powerful and damaging. Kimble had tried to destroy himself, so upset he had been. The Quitter came in and took over after Kyle saved him and then things just got ugly. Now Kimble was killing. Now Kimble was gone again.

Remy felt a surge of hatred for Logan swell up inside of him and did his best to shove it back. His emotions had been way out of whack since he'd first tried to use this empathy, a door had been opened in his mind and the demon was loose. He now had a better understanding of poor Rogue when she had her PMS outbreaks. He used to tease her incessantly about it because she would scream and cry for no reason, fly off the handle over tiny insignificant things. He was going through something like that now himself. He was swamped from all sides from vibrations and spanking himself constantly with his guilt while choking back an ever increasing irrational rage. He was fighting a near constant craving he had no explanation for, that nothing ordinary would satisfy. He hoped it was just his libido complaining at not being fed. But he couldn't be sure. Not until he dared to put it to the test, something he wasn't ready for just yet.

The only moments of peace he had was in the company of the newest X-men, Seth and Molly. Seth's innocence and natural passivity calmed him and made him smile. They would use the Internet to search out their prey, dearest Kimble. They had no success, but had a blast none the less, Gambit showing Seth hacker sites and snickering when they came across porno sites along the way. Seth was shy and naive, he knew very little and Remy just loved to shock him with pictures of bizarre sex and doctored pictures of women with oversized breasts and such. Remy would wiggle his eyebrows suggestively and Seth would laugh and move on. He was naturally curious, but Fallen was all he would ever need.

Remy was also growing to enjoy Molly very much. They liked a lot of the same things and were two of the youngest people in this large click of mutants. They had fallen into a sort of routine, showing up to watch X-files at the same time in the common room, eating the same junk food. She was gracious and laughed at all of his jokes, making him smile. He honestly wished she wasn't so young, he had seen a scowl of disapproval on Logan's face more than once, though the guy said nothing. He would just hover close by, making sure Gambit's hands stayed in the proper place as if Kimble's perversion for fresh young meat had rubbed off on him. Logan had grown protective of his niece and Remy knew his ass would be squashed flat if he made any kind of move on her.

Remy regarded her now. "So you gonna tell Gambit what you doin' up here, chere?"

I had a nightmare.

"Seems like you an' me got sumptin' in common. How 'bout you tell me 'bout it? Might make ya feel better, non?"

I dreamt about the Lion Man.

"Who's dat?"

Molly sighed softly, fresh tears leaking out of her eyes. I wasn't always like this, I used to live with my Mom and I could talk and sing. I really miss that, I used to sing all the time. My Mom bought me records of children's songs and we'd sing and dance. We lived in this great big house with a nice big yard where I used to run and play. I never had a Daddy, but I didn't care, I had my mother and my sister. I was so happy then.

Molly sniffed and wiped at her face, taking a breath before she continued. When I was four, a man broke into our house. He was big and mean, scary. He had these great big claws on his hands and big sharp teeth. He didn't say anything, he just came in growling and screaming, breaking glass and the furniture. He chased us through the house. He killed my Mom and my sister.

"You 'ad a sister?"

Yeah, we were twins. Her name was Sandy. We looked exactly the same and I loved her so much. We used to play and hide all of the time. When the Lion Man came into the house, me and my sister ran away and hid in the closet. It was big and deep inside, we used to play hide and seek in there all the time. The Lion Man came and found us anyways, smelling us with his nose. I could hear him sniffing as he came closer and closer. He found us in there and he got Sandy first. He took my sister and killed her, ripping her apart with his claws. He...he grabbed me and did this... She pointed to her neck and the jagged scar there. Karen thinks I made him up, but he did this to me. It's so ugly and terrible.

"Easy, girl," Remy said, brushing the tears from her face. "You ain't de only one scarred 'round 'ere."

It's ugly.

Remy smiled at her sadly and slowly stripped off his shirt. "Non, dis is ugly."

Her eyes widened and she touched his chest lightly with her fingers. Wow, these look just like mine. As if they were made by the same monster.

Molly could have no idea just how true her words were. She hadn't been told about her father, nor had Remy. It was a secret kept by those few who knew. It was considered irrelevant and no one wanted to upset Molly unnecessarily. Remy had passed off Logan's protectiveness of Molly as a side effect of his relationship with Karen, the psychologist regarded Molly as her daughter or a younger sister at least. Neither one of these two young people knew just what they were looking at now as they compared scars.

"Dey was made by a monster, oui. Long time ago. Back when Gambit wasn't always so nice. Got clawed by a real bad man. Looks like Gambit's got a Lion Man just like you. Dream about it sometimes, too. But I don' let 'im get to me. Dat would be givin' 'im power over me an' I won't ever do dat. You gotta do de same, chere, or you never gonna be free of it."

Molly looked up into his eyes and saw his compassion and caring for her. She felt a surge of happiness and a blast of heat that rocked her more than the liquor had. She leaned in and kissed him in a reckless move, spurned on by a feeling she didn't understand.

Remy swooned, startled by her vibration of happiness and then her innocent lust. It shot right into his brain and right down to his crotch. He couldn't stop himself from returning her kiss and enjoying it. His hands found her hair and he was making out with her, kissing her thoroughly and tasting the heat of her tiny little mouth. He could taste the whiskey there and it almost drove him mad. It took a full minute for his brain to kick into gear, alarm bells screaming, and he pulled away from her, his eyes wide. He was trembling badly now, his pants horribly tight and uncomfortable. He wanted to bolt, but didn't want to frighten her.

"You don't want any of dis," he whispered, his voice thick now with desire.

Please... she signed and came closer, seeking more. She was on fire now, all hunger and need. Never had she been kissed like that, nor had she felt such a burning inside. She wanted his hands on her, his mouth on her lips again.

"Non," he said with gentle insistence. Lord have mercy, this was the hardest thing he ever had to do. He wanted her badly, he could see her tumbling down into his arms, shivering and shaking from his touch. How he would make her virgin body explode with ecstacy. He swallowed heavily and retreated. "You a young girl, petite. You still a child."

I am not! she signed, growing upset.

"How old are you, fille, eh? You ain't a day over sixteen."

She didn't answer. Her sixteenth birthday was a good six months away.

"Look, girl. Gambit's yo' friend, but dat's it. Dere can't be nuthin' else, comprenez?"

She started to pull away from him, but he grabbed her hand. "Look, now. Don't you be runnin' away. Gambit already lose one friend over sumptin' stupid. Don' wanna be losin' another. Dis ain't gonna come 'tween us. Don' make Gambit sorry he come out here and try to make you feel better."

She cried a little more and he shushed her, wiping her tears away. "Paisible maintenant, chere. Quiet, dere. Hush now." He pulled her close but kept that dangerous, luscious mouth of hers turned away. "Gambit knows it's hard. He been right where you are. So young, so full of fire. Just you gotta wait. Yo' time will come."

She sniffed and signed, Can I have another drink?

He chuckled softly and gave her the bottle. "You an' me, both."

She drank and the moment passed. He felt it and was never more grateful. That had been too close for comfort. "How 'bout dis boy walk you down to your room? It awful late, chere."

She nodded but wobbled when she tried to stand. She was drunk now, her tiny body not used to the large shots she had taken in so quickly. She giggled, the tense moment gone and her good humor returning. He steadied her and they quieted as they entered the house. He escorted her back to her room, praying Logan was nowhere near and saw her safely back to bed. He went back to his tiny room and crawled into his bed, warmed by her. Her kiss still burned on his mouth and he used it to help him pleasure himself, jerking off as a means to relax, to quell the rising emotions within him. He wouldn't really touch her, he didn't dare. But he vowed to be much more careful. His eyes slid shut, weary now and he slipped back into sleep, a small smile there. He didn't dream again.

(break)

Wolverine was crouched in the big backyard tree where the picnic table was, invisible in the blackness of the night. He loved this big tree and the outdoors gave him peace. It had been a week since Zander had shot him and it had been hard. Even now his body still ached inside if he jumped around or tried to do too much. He had no room to complain really. He had easily lost a third of his body mass, it was a miracle his healing factor had been able to repair that much damage.

He still remembered that strange episode where Remy had worked some kind of magic and stolen his secret from him. He had waited for Gambit to follow up on it and pester him for more, but the boy had backed off, no doubt waiting for him to recover. It wasn't a confrontation he was looking forward to. In his heart, Logan was an arrogant, proud man, he never liked to admit it when he fucked up. The fight was sure to be big and ugly. Maybe Kimble would come home soon and Remy would be more forgiving once he had his toy back.

In the meantime, he had his Karen. His lovely Karen. He trembled at the thought of her, she was so incredibly beautiful to him. So soft and warm, he couldn't help but smile. He had been carrying around a great big empty hole inside of him for so long, he had grown used to it being there. Now it was filled and he wondered how he'd ever lived without her. He would curl up and die of she were gone. It was a hard pitiful fact. He wouldn't tell her this, his pride and his will prevented him from such an admission of weakness, but he thought perhaps she could see it. He would catch her looking at him, a small wistful smile on her face.

Wolverine's head turned when he caught a noise. He had climbed way up high in the tree and it had given him a good view of the house and the widow's peak. Molly come out and he heard her softly crying. He was just about to come down to go to her when he heard Remy come out. Logan paused, his hackles rising.

He had taken on the silent protector role for Molly just as he had done with all of his X-men, but she would always be special to him because she was his blood. He knew she hadn't been told, in fact his voice was the loudest against it. He feared she would seek out her father for revenge or something and get in harm's way. Logan had no doubt as to the identity of the Lion Man. Her growing attraction to Gambit also hadn't gone unnoticed. So far the Cajun hadn't given him any real reason for concern, but he knew Remy was loose. Worse than that was the boy's instability. His swift mood swings concerned him. He didn't know if Remy would freak out or snap at her, maybe he would do something reckless and take her for a tumble, only to dump her by the wayside after. It would probably be a death sentence for Remy, Logan was not about to stand by and see Molly get used as a rebound cure for Rogue.

Wolverine watched now as Remy offered her comfort and then the bottle. Logan wasn't too concerned about her drinking, he would know if she made a habit of it. If it developed into something, he would be sure to bring it up to Karen. Right now the girl was upset and he didn't see the harm.

Logan had been good and learned his sign language. His sharp eyesight and night vison let him catch most of what she was saying, Remy he could hear well enough even from this distance. Logan's mutation gave him dog range hearing if not better. It had been disconcerting at first until he had trained himself not to get so swamped by it all and use it to his advantage. He was well used to it now and was playing spy. Molly was open to Remy and Logan learned more about the Lion Man than Molly had revealed to him before, he certainly didn't know she'd had a twin sister. Molly's tears of pain hurt him deeply, but his hackles rose again when he saw that kiss.

Lordy, Lordy, would you look at that. Wolverine trembled, his teeth clenching tightly. The only thing that saved Remy's life at that point was the thief's quick withdrawal and his firmness in stating his position. He would not pursue her. Logan had heard his fear and his regret. He liked her, but she was too young. Yeah, no shit, Sherlock, Logan grumbled to himself. Good thing you noticed.

The kids went off to bed and Logan climbed down out of the tree, wincing a little as his weight hit the ground. He was still so incredibly sore. He made his way quietly back into the house, sure to sniff out that each of the two kids were in the rooms they belonged in before going back to his own room. He stayed there long enough to grab a change of clothes before creeping into Karen's room.

They weren't an official item, at least not so far as him moving his clothes yet, so they didn't share the same room. Most agreed it was just a matter of time. She had the better room with the most space. It looked as though Remy might get an upgrade on his living quarters, he would no doubt take Logan's larger room once the feral man gave it up. Karen smiled in her sleep when she felt the weight of her lover disturb the bed and she automatically snuggled down against him. Wolverine felt her come against him and another shudder of pleasure rocked him. Her smell washed over him and the sound of her breathing was the greatest lullaby. He waited to see if she would wake, but when she didn't, smiled anyway and buried his nose in her sweet smelling hair. He closed his eyes and was almost instantly asleep, happy now for perhaps the first time in years.

(break)

The house may have been quiet that night, but not everyone was having bad dreams or nice sweet kisses. Well, not at the moment that Logan's eyes had closed and Remy's soft breathing disturbed the darkness there. Seth sat at his desk, a contented smile on his face. He had left Fallen to sleep after a nice happy tumble, her hair tangled just so and her own lips curled into a wistful smile. He had brushed his lips to her forehead and left her, returning to his Siskan life, the one where the hologram never sleeps, but works diligently on a never ending quest for his lost brother.

Fallen had done some rearranging on the Lucky Dragon. The cage room had been converted into a Master bedroom with solid walls. The two pilot sticks were now in the Main Room with the wall behind them. Fallen wanted privacy now with Seth since he was out and made sure that she got it. Maylee still came by to visit and slept over, often now with Max. The two kids were still young and kept separate for sleeping, Kimble's room had become a temporary guest room.

Gambit had scowled when he first saw this, it was as though Kimble had been dumped or forgotten, but kept his anger to himself. It was an unspoken fact that Kimble's return would not be easy. He was considered a criminal now because of the murder of the security guard and his vicious attack on Logan. Kimble would probably be kept in the holding cells for a while if he did come back and put through a lengthy rehabilitation.

Gambit visited the ship often to spend time with Seth and the young Siskan was grateful for the thief's company. Both kept late hours and Seth loved the attention, he wasn't left as alone as Kimble had been. They would surf the Internet and have a blast, but there were times when Seth was on his own. Fallen had remodeled the tool room as well, giving him his own work space not unlike the control room he used to have when he had been inside the system. He had two powerful desktop computers as well as a laptop. He was working with Henry on integrating the X-men's Shi'ar technology with the Dognan and Siskan stuff Fallen had. It would prove to be mutually beneficial to both of them. Also, in his spare time, Seth was working on his own codes.

The young Siskan wasn't happy with his constant bungling and un-coordination. He was grateful that Fallen had left the bridges in place for him to return to the system. He hadn't gone back yet, indeed was paranoid that he would get trapped there again, but liked having the option open. He was working on discovering what his deficiencies were so he could correct them. He had no illusions about this, it would take a long time and might never happen. It was something he was doing to amuse himself. If he was able to fix the codes, he would make one last dive into the system, upload the changes and depart a free man. The idea of it filled him with happiness.

Next to Seth, on his desk, was one of Kimble's sketches in a frame. He had asked Remy for one and the thief was more than happy to share. Seth had tastefully folded the paper to conceal the sexual nature of it, it was one of Kimble's more graphic portrayals of his love for Remy. Seth had wanted a picture of his brother, he had no stored images or photographs. He didn't want to leave it out in its entirety, he was aware that such things didn't go over well with the humans around him. But there were times when he was alone that he would slip it from its frame and look with wonder on the image Kimble had made. He had no experience whatsoever with this form of sex, Fallen was his one and only sexual partner ever, and had to admit it peaked his curiosity. He was still a Siskan Courtesan inside.

Like Kimble, he found Remy beautiful and wondered about him sometimes, what it would be like to be loved and kissed by him. It was a childish wondering, one born from a naturally inquisitive mind. He couldn't help but be curious about those closest to him and Remy was often around, flashing that charming smile and always trying to cheer him. Remy was naturally affectionate to those he cherished and his fingers would find their way to carefully stroke Seth's head or gently pat his shoulder. Seth liked to be touched and enjoyed the gestures very much, they reminded him of Kimble who had always found it easy to demonstrate his love with physical contact.

Seth knew who he belonged to and had no desire to stray. He could see that Fallen was like the rest of the humans here, she wouldn't understand his curiosity. It was in the protective and jealous way she guarded him sometimes. She didn't share him with many people, they spent most of their time here on the ship and working with Henry on the technology integration. When Seth wanted to explore, Fallen was always with him. Seth learned to keep his musings to himself and said nothing to anyone.

Seth was still learning at a high rate of speed. His desk was large and littered with the debris of spent books and computer discs. For all his discovery, he was no closer to finding his brother. He still ached for any word of Kimble and dreaded that his resurfacing would be as bad if not worse than when the security guard had been killed. It was commonly believed that Kimble was now in the hands of Jael, no one here had any reason to believe Sabretooth wouldn't turn Kimble over and collect his reward. Remy had promised him he would search the tunnels again, he was waiting for Wolverine to recover some more. The two of them together were sure to learn something there.

Remy wouldn't let Seth lose hope. He was quick to reassure, quick to dispense chocolate at the first sign of tears. The thief now had a new habit of keeping bite sized chocolate bars in his deep pockets, just for emergencies. Seth was grateful, still not fully cognizant of how well he was being supported and looked after, the mistakes made with Kimble would not be repeated.

Even Logan would come by and see him. He still wanted to use Seth's hacking abilities to gain access to other systems to get more information on Jael. Seth had broken into SHIELD's high security system using an ingenious back door and now the X-men were feeding happily off of the government's fat cat computer, gorging on information they would have had to pay dearly for without him.

Logan had called up Nick Fury and handed over Kyle's keys as a conciliatory gesture after the bank robbery had gone so far awry. They still had to plead for Kimble's life and this was a gesture of good faith. The safe deposit box Kyle had spoken of contained vast amounts of documents and video files of Cameron's illegal dealings. There was even a clip where Cameron himself ordered Michael to kill. It was enough for SHIELD to go out and arrest him and most of the Freedom Kings. It was all over the news when Cameron Bishop had been arrested along with over half of his Freedom Kings. All had been charged with terrorism and other felonies and sent off to jail - Cameron Bishop wasn't going to be a problem for anybody ever again. Fury wasn't happy about the keys being withheld at first but understood Logan had been badly damaged. He would be lenient.

Seth was included in the meeting as an example of what a Siskan was and to represent his brother's interests. Handing over Cameron Bishop like that was a big step in getting Kimble incarcerated here at the Mansion for his crime and worked with instead of being tossed into a SHIELD prison. Fury had listened to Seth's impassioned pleas for his brother's life and seemed to understand that Kimble wouldn't be a threat once he was removed from the bad influences warping his poor Siskan mind.

Seth sat at his desk, trying not to let his thoughts wander too far. He was prone to long crying jags when left too long alone, his brother's absence a hard pain to bear. Too late. His eyes strayed once more to the picture at his side. Kimble was a skilled penciller, his own portrait was almost perfect. Seth's eyes misted before he could catch his next breath. "I miss you..." he whispered and then the dam broke and he was bawling softly, alone in the silent night of the ship.