A/N: Hello again, dear readers! This fic here is a bit different from what I usually do, it's going to be a short one. I'm thinking Part I and Part II.

Events are set about a month after the end of Mr. and Mrs.X. It's basically plot for smut, which is not really my usual modus operandi. But I woke up with this idea and even though I was a bit shy to write it, I decided to throw caution to the wind. After all, I'm just here to have some fun.

I wrote it at one go (Typical me) and haven't shown it to anyone, no beta, you know, 'we die like men' sort of thing. Let me know if you enjoy it. And to the one hater that I have, (I've made it big, I have a hater, you guys!) there's no Magneto or Bishop here, love. It's safe for you to read. Muah!

All Hail The Queen

Part I

The house was fairly quiet when he heard his phone ring. It was usually kept on silent mode but there was that ringtone especially selected for Guild emergencies. However, more often than not, it was just his father misusing that secured number just to catch up on his latest news. There had been times when his heart would skip a beat at that sound, but as of late, he would just answer the call nonplussed.

If only he knew the news that awaited him, he wouldn't have been so unperturbed. He let the first call go unanswered, it was too early in the morning. After a quick inspection, he realized Rogue was gone for her run. Another ring, he thought he might as well pick it up this time. Feeling annoyed, he groaned low as he shifted in bed, and finally hit the answer button. He got up from bed and made his way to the living room. Still not feeling completely awake, he landed heavily on the sofa.

"Ça va, pére. What's up? Blowing up my phone this early, who died?"

"No one, not yet. But you might if you don't hear me out carefully." Remy rolled his eyes with all his might and thought it was his father's exaggeration.

The tone of his father's voice made it clear it was not one of those catch up calls. He was calling to urge his son and Guildmaster about the importance of tradition now that he had just recently confirmed his position as the King of the Thieves. All things considered, he should make sure he wouldn't fall back on his obligations again.

After all, his lack of observance of their wedding rituals was one of the factors that made the Guild question how committed to being their king he truly was. How can a King marry someone that wasn't from any Guild family? And what's worse, he did so without informing them beforehand, or getting their approval. Someone clearly hadn't read the fine print when he agreed to be their king.

Jean-Luc went on to explain about a particular ceremony that Remy could vaguely remember having heard of. It was one of the Guild tales that the pubescent boys of the Guild loved to share in secret to those who were just about to enter those magical teenage years. It involved sex, obviously. Something about the rumors that his father and mother had taken part in such a peculiar event had him cringing so hard that made him push that memory to the back of his mind like some unwanted childhood trauma. So, Jean-Luc made sure he explained to him all the sordid details of the ritual he was hoping Remy would consider enacting.

"You know what you should do, son. You know how you broke all the rules royally with your spontaneous wedding. Make no mistake, I love Rogue and how you got her to finally say yes to you, but you know how things work here..."

From the other side of the line, Jean-Luc could hear his son sigh in discontent. He always did that when he knew he was in the wrong. After a long silence, he finally voiced his short reply.

"I'll talk to Rogue."

"See that you do, mon fils. You know, as well as I do, that we have to avoid conflicts within the guild at all costs. The King of Thieves held in chains to the ceiling wasn't a pretty sight. I hope to God it won't happen again."

Remy was deep in thought minutes after the call had ended. The only information provided by his father that was actually partially new for him was the possible solution to the situation. His cousin Emil had already told him about the dissatisfaction concerning his marriage coming from some members of the Guild, even after they seemed to have settled things and Jean-Luc was appointed as his proxy in his absence.

How would he even approach Rogue about that matter? Unfortunately for him, he wouldn't be allowed much longer for pondering. His beautiful wife had just made it into the apartment after her early morning jogging. Her keys fell loudly onto the counter top while she juggled with a tray containing two tall coffees and a brown bag filled with pastries for them both to enjoy together. One quick glance at him and she read him like an open book.

"What's wrong, Remy?", she asked with a frown. She placed the items she had been carrying on a table and hurriedly found herself a spot on the sofa next to him. As much as she wanted to go for a shower after running, her husband was her top priority.

He watched her in silence for a moment. Could he lie to her? He was certainly able to, but was determined on cutting down on that pattern. But a quick white lie just so that he would buy himself some time to craft a better way of telling her about the recent events wasn't such a bad idea. His eyes locked on hers and he saw the concern in them.

But then, what was the point in lying? She knew it already. She knew something was troubling him. So much for that poker face he cultivated over the years, that woman could see right through him like no one else.

He loved her so much, he didn't want to trouble her or offend her with what he eventually would have to ask her. No words were spoken, they wouldn't come out. She held his gaze intensely, as if she was scanning his facial expression for answers.

"Remy Ettienne Le Beau! Did the cat catch your tongue? What is going on? Come on, sugar! Would you tell me already?"

She cupped his face in her hands and raised her eyebrows and nodded lightly to encourage him to speak, he couldn't help but comply to her wishes.

"You know you have married into a very weird family, don't you, chére? Let's say, Adams family of the swamps, if you will."

She immediately dropped her hands at the mention of his family. Not the Thieves Guild again! They had been in New Orleans less than a month before. After their latest encounter with the guild, she couldn't say she was thrilled to hear about Guild related drama. She hoped he would tell her that it was only Tante asking for babies again, but still, she couldn't hide her disappointment. Deep inside, she knew there had to be more to it.

"Oh, sugar. What was it this time?"

Remy bent down and his lips searched hers. They brushed hers ever so lightly, eliciting fuzzy warm feelings in her heart. Then, what started as a little peck turned into a slow sexy kiss. Unsurprisingly, he resorted to kissing her instead of answering her question. 'Typical Remy!', she thought.

"That tactic is old as fuck, Remy. You look upset. I'm only asking you because I want to know if there's anything I can do to help, don't you know?" Her voice was soft, she was not mad at him. 'Not yet!', he thought. His wife brushed her knuckles over his face delicately while speaking. He leaned his face into her caressing fingers, welcoming her affection.

"Well, actually, you are the only one who could help me, ma colombe. This is about you. But let me give you a heads up, you're definitely not gonna like it."

"And that's why you're stalling. That I knew already." she said and rolled her eyes at him, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Okay, the thing is that the Guild is not happy that I got married outside of the Guild without following traditions and protocols. That is something they would frown upon if it was just a member, but for the King to do such a thing, even the more outrageous!"

"I suspected they would give us a hard time for that," she conceded, nodding her head.

"Oui, it turned out that was one of the reasons why people started distrusting me as a King. Yet it has just come to my attention that there's a way to fix things, you see. There's this ritual..."

"Oh, boy! I can see where this is going. Are they going to flog me, torture me, throw me in a pit or something?"

Remy laughed pretty hard at her suggestions, that kind of rolling on the floor laughing. His wife was not a tiny bit impressed and landed a soft slap on his arm in reprimand.

"Stop laughing, you silly swamp rat. And just tell me already what this is all about."

"Well, it's just that if you look at it that way you're imagining, then it's not so bad. Compared to flogging, this ritual is a breeze. But I assure you that you're still not gonna like the idea of it." He managed to say in between suppressed giggles.

She gave him that hard look that he knew better than keep up with the suspense.

"Okay, chére, do you want the short version or the unabridged one? There's not really much way to make it sound pretty."

"Short." She spat the word out feeling utterly annoyed.

"We have to have sex in front of the members of the council."

"What!?" She indignantly asked him. Rogue could hardly believe what she just heard. Out of all the Guild's infamous practices this had to be the wackiest.

"This is the centuries-old way to prove we have consummated our wedding and you're not some infiltrated impostor "

"No fucking way! This is insane! Just an excuse for perves! Is the long version any better?"

"A bit, they won't actually see the action in detail, but will be present at the ceremony chamber which will be dimly lit. We will be wearing white cloaks with lots and lots of fabric in them. So, we will be naked underneath, but people wouldn't be able to see much, I assume. I have never been to such a ceremony. It's just the old folks and people don't really need to do that these days because they will get married the guild way to avoid that happening in the first place."

"When was the last time this ceremony took place?" She asked with curiosity.

"I guess my own father was the last one. He chose his wife, she was an outsider too, you see."

"And I thought my adopted family was weird..." She commented shaking her head.

"For what is worth, my father has never tried to seduce you." He fired back at her with a little smile mischievously tugging on the corner of his lips. It was not the first time he referred to the time Mystique had morphed into a younger woman to seduce him. She posed as a new X-Men recruit, it was her most shocking attempt to break the couple apart.

"Ok, point taken," she acknowledged. "So, we go in, we fuck and that's it? No more drama?"

"There are some rules..."

"Oh, God! What rules, Remy?"

"Sex has to be done on a chair. In my case, not just any chair, but the Guildmaster's chair."

"So, wait. We have to have sex on your father's chair? And your mother fucked your father on the same chair you sit on as a king? Man, what a trip!"

"Actually, I had never thought about that. Thank you very much." He said, cringing at that new notion. Now it was her turn to laugh at him and that she did. She cracked up until actual tears were running down her face.

"Are you done yet?"

"Oh, Remy, sugar. You gotta admit, this is so crazy," she said, snaking her arms around his torso, she hugged him tenderly. After placing a kiss on his neck, she rested her face on his shoulder. He responded to that with a sweet kiss on the top of her head. They remained silent for a while, each of them lost in thoughts and considerations.

"Anything else I should know before I give you my answer?"

"There is more, the whole point of this is to make sure you're enjoying yourself, that our marriage is not a fake arrangement. And the act has to be overseen from beginning to end."

"Meaning?"

"I have to come."

"Oh, sugar. We don't do it in 5 minutes. You last long, which I usually appreciate and, , brag about it to the girls. But in this situation, not so much."

"I know! That's why I brought this particular rule up."

"We could go for a week without it, to see if we could have an explosive quickie and be done with that already."

"Hang on a second, chére. Does that mean you're considering it?"

"Oh, Rems, we have been through so much crazy shit together, it will be just another one of our long string of uncanny stories to tell when we get old."

"You see, if we had gone to that voyeurs sex club like I suggested that one time, this would all be much easier... We could still try it upfront, for practice, you know."

"Don't push your luck, Cajun!"

-oOo-

Next time, the ceremony!