Author's note: I am so immensely sorry that i have neglected this story so much. BUT, i have renewed determination to complete it, if you'll just bare with me. I'm glad so many pple seemed to enjoy it, so anyway, here's the next chapter:

Angel. Chapter 10

Rogue gave a perfunctory knock before opening the dark mahogany door in front of her. The room she led Gambit into was filled with the fresh scent of the garden beneath its large windows. Professor Charles Xavier was seated behind his large desk with Scott to his left. They both looked at her expectantly.

"Sorry to disturb you, Professor, Scott, but there's someone here to see the Professor," Rogue announced. She moved aside to let Remy move into the centre of the room with Wolverine following, glaring suspiciously at Gambit's back.

"Heel, Wolverine," Rogue teased in a whisper only he could hear. She laughed quietly to herself at the glare he then directed towards her.

As the Professor surveyed the spiky red-haired man before him with his dark brown coat swirling around his boots, he turned to the other occupants of the room, saying, "If the rest of you could leave us, please?"

They obliged.

"I never would have expected to see you here, Gambit. We agreed you'd never come to see me at the school – it's too dangerous. You're cover could be - "

"Relax, relax, Professor. Gambit know how to outwit the Brotherhood."

"I don't doubt that you do, but this is taking too huge of a risk, surely?"

Gambit shrugged noncommittally. He began wandering around the room, idly fingering objects. The Professor was contemplative, watching him closely. Gambit suddenly stilled, then turned to face the Professor.

"Gambit has told you many times not to try to look into his head," he hissed angrily.

"I apologise, but you're acting strange. What's going on?"

Gambit seemed to weigh up something in his mind before he regarded the Professor soberly and said, "It's ready."

The Professor's face darkened almost imperceptibly and he wheeled around to look into the garden and beyond. He heaved a long sigh before asking, "How long do we have?"

"Not long."

"God help us."

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Outside the door, the three X-men stood waiting anxiously to find out about the mysterious new arrival.

"Have you met him before?" Wolverine asked deceptively quietly, breaking the tense silence.

Rogue shifted her weight from her right foot onto her left, feeling suddenly traitorous for no apparent reason, "Yeah," she murmured sullenly.

"Oh?" Wolverine commented. "When was this?"

"A while ago."

"That's real specific, baby. When was a while ago?" He was getting annoyed.

Rogue snapped her head up to glare at him. "Does it matter? I met him once in a bar, there's not much else to say."

"It matters to me. You seemed to be getting real friendly with him back in the garden. You sure you only met him the one time?" Logan hated how jealous he sounded.

"Logan!" Rogue exclaimed, feeling scandalised. "It's none of your business how I know him or for how long!"

"It sure as hell is my business," Logan began before Scott let out a shout instructing them to "Both shut the hell up!"

They turned to glare at Scott. Scott looked back at them both, unfazed. "Save this lovers' squabble for later."

Thankfully, before they could launch into a combined attack on Scott, the Professor's door opened.

"Come in Scott, Rogue and Logan" the Professor's controlled voice rang out.

The three obeyed.

"I'd like to formally introduce you to Remy LeBeau aka Gambit. He will be joining the team and staying here for the next few months."

Scott immediately extended a hand to greet Remy while Rogue couldn't suppress the jolt of excitement that shot through her body. She had to hold herself back from hugging him and instead gave Remy a measured handshake with a muted smile. Wolverine grunted at him and snubbed Remy's attempt to shake his hand.

"Rogue, if you could find somewhere for Remy to sleep . . ." The Professor began.

"But Professor," Rogue interrupted. "There are little or no spare beds available."

The Professor was already waving her away. "I trust you can arrange something for him."

Rogue had barely exited the room when she heard the Professor speaking to Scott and Logan, "There is much to discuss, gentlemen."

The walk to the dorms was a quiet one as Remy silently inspected his surroundings and Rogue was brainstorming some arrangements to be made to accommodate Remy. She had a brainwave.

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"HELL NO, ROGUE!" Jubilee shrieked.

"C'mon, Jubes, it won't be too long and there's nowhere else for him to stay," Rogue pleaded.

She had suggested that Remy take the room next to Jubilee's, the catch being that Remy and Jubes would have to share a bathroom. It wasn't going down too well.

"No. I adamantly refuse." Jubes was determined to be stubborn about this.

"Hey, Remy's not too thrilled neither," Remy felt obliged to comment.

"Both of you – stop! This is the final decision. Jubes, you'll have to put up with him sharing your bathroom and Remy, you have to be respectful towards Jubes's personal space."

Remy smirked, "Sure, Remy can do dat."

"Bullshit," Jubes disagreed.

"Jubes," Rogue warned.

"Be reasonable, Rogue, I don't even know this guy . . ."

"Well, here's a chance. I'll leave you two to it." Rogue made a hasty escape, leaving the two staring, unimpressed, at one another.

There was a long silence.

"So . . . do you always talk like that?" Jubilee ventured.

"Like what?" Remy snapped, on the defensive.

"In the third person. Doesn't it strike you as weird?"

"Not as weird as you."

Jubilee silently fumed. Remy surveyed her room with a look closely akin to disgust.

"Does your room always look like this?" he asked lightly.

"Like what?" Jubes asked between gritted teeth.

"Like a dumphole," Remy smiled.

Jubilee felt the familiar energetic pulse forming in her fist and shot her 'fireworks' towards in two balls, aiming for his chest. Remy was too quick and side-stepped her blast, whipping out an Ace of Spades from his coat packet.

"Watch it, girlie, Remy has very accurate aim," he mocked.

"You watch it Cajun boy, next time you may not move quickly enough. Besides, what're you gonna do? Flick me to death with your cards?"

Remy scowled but launched the card like a bomb underneath Jubilee's bed. There was an nonplussed silence as Jubilee stared derisively from him to her bed. But before she could begin her verbal assault, her entire bed had blown up, scattering wood and mattress around the room. Jubilee's jaw dropped. Somewhere on the other side of the mansion, a certain woman struggled to find a hiding place as a enraged shout of "ROGUE!" echoed throughout the school's grounds.

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