I savour the breeze, my eyelids fluttering closed as I breathed in the briny aroma. Damn, this time travel has drained me. How long have I been sleeping? At least my tan will match that of my younger self.
I listen to the sounds of the sea, lost in the rhythmic percussion of waves on sand. My eyes find the horizon and I feel the warmth in my face aglow with the last orange rays before twilight beckons the stars. Scrunching my toes, I feel the softness of the sand, still damp from the retreating tide. I wiggle slightly as a shiver cascades down my spine and the last memories of me kissing Joelle's lips lightly, almost respectfully, as I tell her this is it, it's time to go and fix what I can for all of us. The last thing I remember is me propelling myself by a wave-like aura and transplanting my own body's matter through time and space. I don't even know if I'm in the right time frame as I intended. Sighing, I take in the scenery around me. The sand blurs out in a blissful trance, the shore fading into liquid gold, vivid in the brilliant light. My lips curve upward. Yes, I know where I am, it worked.
Once again, I bestow my gaze to the far off horizon, the flaring hues of the sun melting into the sky and ocean like a divine painting. The forever stretching sea is masked with an apricot color, that beautiful umber flowing into turquoise. Through narrowed eyes, I take a glance around, trying to find some distinguishing construction that will tell me if I should walk north or south. I stand up and walk until I see Joe's food joint in the distance and I know just where to go. In a few minutes, I'm standing right there, in front of Anna's beach house. That place and all it represents make me smile. All the sweet memories that house has staged, the best days of my life. I take in the scent and am instantly invaded by a swirl of emotions. Those days, the love I felt for her, finally feeling someone loved me for me, with all my flaws, knowing all my misdeeds and still choosing to be with me. I close my eyes for a second, breathing out slowly. Right, time to stop daydreaming and act.
I break into the house with the slightest of ease. The little security the house had was put in place by no one other than myself and I still remember the few little flaws in it.
From the sun baked dryness of outside, the air conditioning of Anna's house was a blessing to the skin. I removed my shades, and smiled as I took in the Mediterranean vibe she had conjured, enjoying the many pot plants that reached upward with broad and spreading leaves. I had almost forgotten about those plants. I'm not surprised to hear soft moans from a distance. It's early evening and I conclude we're both in the house, doing what we did most of the time we spent together in her beach house. No wonder she got pregnant, we're two morons, we should've known.
As I walk past the kitchen, I see her birth control pills laying carelessly on the counter top, next to the coffee maker.
'Fuck! Forgot to take this. What day is it again?', she would often ask frowning and looking at the back of the pack as if she was trying to solve a most difficult math problem. I want to chuckle at that memory but deliberately hold it back. I'm in thief mode and I'd better not make a sound. The moaning continues in the bedroom and it fills my head, I can't help my primal instincts, I'm aroused because of her ohhs and ahhs. I try to shake off the dirty images away from my mind but it proves an easier said than done task. I know only too well how glorious she must be looking right now, luscious lips puckered up as I hammer it into her, just the way she wants, and commands me to.
"Ohmygod, mygod, my god, Remy! Yes, yes! That's it, sugar! Fuck me hard! Harder!"
If there was any doubt in my mind, now I'm sure it's us in there. I thought I'd find her alone. Storm was always calling me during that time to help her out with shit, I guess I miscalculated then.
"Remy, oooh, Remy. Don't stop it, sugar. Give it to me, honey!"
And by the sounds of it, it won't be long until I'm in bed snoozing while she heads to the bathroom for a shower and then comes back to bed and cuddles up to me. I need to work my way faster. I rack my brain to figure out a way I can be in there, in the bathroom, for when she comes in. But what will her reaction be when she sees me? She'll scream, beat the crap out of me before asking any questions. She's just fucked me and she knows the Remy in her bed is in no way an impostor, so guess that leaves me in a disadvantage. I can't even kiss her so she absorbs me and knows I'm real Remy, future Remy, but still her Remy. She's powerless. And somehow I know there won't be any chance for my words to convince her, she'll try to rip me off before that, she never needed her powers to be able to do just that.
"I love you, Anna. Je t'aime, chére." I hear myself saying in between grunts.
Oh, okay. Now I am, I mean, past Remy is, most probably coming and that leaves me no option, but abort mission. This just won't work out the way I planned, I want to talk to her alone. I should go to the garage, hide in there, have some sleep and wait until she shows up for work tomorrow. Then, we'll talk. I was down in the basement, at the laundry area, stealing some of my own clothes so I could better pass for a man who lives in California when I hear a footfall only two metres behind me. There is only one person who could get so close to me without detection and I know she wants me dead.
Anna Marie stood just in front of me, folding both arms over her chest. She would be almost naked if it weren't for the little pair of undies she had on, nothing but them. I smirk at her when our eyes meet.
"Looking good, chére." I whisper.
"Who the hell are you?" She asks furiously.
"I'm Remy, can't you see? Not the one who just made love to you, but still your Remy." As predicted, she's having none of it, her balled fist collided with my cheekbone, flaying my neck backward like a willow caught in the wind. As I stumbled, I nearly fell over the washing machine, rubbing my cheek with my palm.
"Gonna make me love you even more, chére. I always loved a femme who can hold her ground, you know that." I said, regaining my balance. She hit me again, even harder this time, right across the face and I taste my own blood. I manage a hasty, "Easy, chére," before she hits me again. Her body crashes wholly into mine and we go down hard, rolling and slapping, all the while I try to immobilize her, but she has different ideas. We roll a few times across the floor, our panting breaths filling the air. Man, do I sleep heavily after sex! I always thought it was slight snoozing… How in the world my younger self doesn't wake up and join Anna in kicking my ass is anybody's guess.
Our physical altercation went on for God knows how long, she wouldn't even let me catch a breath to speak, say something, tell her why I was there. It was punch after punch, jab after jab and me ducking and swerving and avoiding her fists and knees meeting any part of my body. Those first punches were enough for the night, thank you very much. At one given time, it seemed like I had the situation almost under control.
However, reaching, with her right arm, over my right shoulder and hooking the bend of the arm around my neck, she gets me in a lock. I'm dead meat to her. Clasping both hands together, she expertly exerts pressure with her biceps and forearms on both sides of my neck. I cannot find her eyes at that moment, I can't even use them to plead a voiceless plea. She once told me she can't resist the fire in my eyes for one second. That's always a good card to play, but it's not on the table.
Maintaining pressure with the biceps and forearms on both sides of my neck and she draws me closer by drawing her right arm in.
"Hear me out, sugar." She speaks with some difficulty through her laboured breathing. "I'll let you catch a breath for a second, and you have two seconds, I shit you not, two seconds to tell me who the fuck you are, and what you're doing here, or I'll beat the crap out of you."
"Will you, chére? Just for the record, we both know you got the best of me because your bouncing boobs were distracting me." I guess my usual banter rang a bell and she released the hold a little bit more than she had.
"I'll ask you one last time. Who are you?" Ok, I'd better no make jokes this time, she tightens up her leglock and with one free hand she holds my balls and, squeezes it. Oh, Anna, that was a dirty sleazy move.
"Chére! Bon Dieu! I'm Remy, not the Remy you have sleeping on your bed, future Remy. I time travelled because I need to speak to you. It's very important or I wouldn't go to these lengths. Now, if you could not hurt our playground area, if you know what I mean, that would be good… for both of us." I let out a nervous chuckle.
"Ugh, you actually sound like Remy." She breathed out, a little annoyed.
"Besides, I have my powers on, unlike you guys, and I can show it to you." I guess that argument actually made sense and she let go off me. We were both sitting on the floor, across from each other, she stares at me with wild eyes, waiting for me to show her. I reach inside my pocket slowly, reach for a card, not just any random card, I get the queen of hearts. I deliberately get that card and as soon as she laid her eyes on it, she smiled. Damn right, that was a wise move. It is buying her, we both know the meaning that card has for us. I charge it and watch her green eyes widening, the glow pink of the card reflected into those sparkling eyes of hers.
"There's also this." I get the picture that used to be on a frame in my house and show it to her. She comments on how she recognizes the place, how she told me just two days ago how she wanted to go there.
"I don't recognize the dress I'm wearing, though."
"You'll buy it for this date, a special one, chére. I meant to propose to you that night, seriously, I did, but you said something earlier that day that made me think you'd never want to go down that path. So, if you're interested, I mean, in being my Mrs. LeBeau, don't tell the old lady who lives next door who innocently asked you if you were Mrs. Gambit that you couldn't see the point in spending all that money and time if you don't think getting married will change your relationship. You went blah blah blah about how it doesn't make you less romantic or less in love, it just means you don't care about having paperwork to show it. Poor lady looked at me with pity in her eyes. I'm not joking, she did. So I thought maybe it was best if I'd drop the proposal or the next one to get an earful would be me."
I guess I must have sounded like myself and all the evidence I showed her was enough because without a word, she pulled me toward her and started kissing me. My eyes widened in shock as she held my face in her hands and kissed me fiercely. I felt her arms tighten round me, in a nice way this time. I pushed my hand down on to her breast, playing with her nipples the same way I always did, doing a dance with my fingers I know she loves and would recognize instantly and she did, responding to it by kissing me even harder.
"Anna?" I hear the younger version of myself calling out from inside the house causing us both to jump.
"That's funny, it feels like I'm cheating on… you." She says and asks me to stay right where I was, she'd distract me, him, oh you know, ask him to go get her favorite burger at Joe's. That would buy us at least half an hour, more than enough, I assured her.
Things didn't exactly play out exactly as I envisioned because as Anna was practically naked, Remy wouldn't just let her go before having another go at her body. I had to sit patiently and wait until they finished a second round of it, in the kitchen this time. It was another good half hour until she emerged back in the basement.
"Remy?" She asked, hugging herself. She was now wearing shorts and a top I still remembered. "This feels funny, I can't shake the feeling that I'm deceiving you, younger you. I am, aren't I?"
"It's for a good cause, I promise you." She smiled adoringly at my words. "Ok, chére. Listen up, I came back for you, for your happiness, our happiness. So, hear me out carefully, our future depends on it."
"We are happy right now." She said sheepishly.
"I know, chére. But what we have here, it won't last forever, mon coeur." I let out a frustrated sigh, she picks up on it and frowns. I went through what I was going to say at that moment over and over in my head, and still hadn't figured out what to say. "Ok, here's the deal, I come here as angel Gabriel of sorts, so…" Her face washes pale and I know she got my metaphor.
"You can't be serious, Remy."
"Anna, beautiful Anna, thy will have my baby." I say playfully.
"Fuck, Remy! Is this your idea of a joke?"
"Non, chére. It's not. At first I thought of coming dressed like a male version of a Victoria Secrets model, now that would be joke. I'd do a little musical for your benefit and would be singing something like this:
'If you're peeing a lot and need more rest
Visit Dr McCoy for a pregnancy test'
And I do my opera singer act and she laughs out loud until there are actual tears in her eyes.
"Oh come on, Remy! Well, now that's plain silliness. You can't be serious. And you'd be coming back to tell me this? Oh you asshole! I don't believe it I gave you a minute of my attention." She says and slaps my arm jokingly. "Now spit it out. What's gonna be the matter? Who's gonna try to kill us this time? Did Xavier send you?" She asks hurriedly.
"I'm serious, chére. I came because of your pregnancy." I say firmly and then I proceed to explain to her what happened to our baby in the future, how she felt guilty, and later depressed, how we drifted apart and she's shocked, her body shaking and her eyes pooled with tears. She protests against the improbability of that ever happening, her not noticing it, of us not being together. So, I tell her how powers came back and how she took it really hard that we couldn't touch anymore. She was so sad at the news, got reclusive and cold towards me, what was happening with her own body was the least of her worries.
"A baby? We're gonna have a baby? The idea seems so farfetched."
"Why chére? We were at each other's pants all of the time. It would be odd if it didn't happen, what with you always forgetting those damn pills." She sighed while her shining eyes examined my whole body, stopping when they found my devil eyes.
"True, sugar. You're most probably right. Don't worry, I won't miss it this time around, okay? It's just… it's hard to believe all this." She paused, reached out and held my face in her hands, kissed my lips gently. "You do have some wrinkles my Remy doesn't have now, you know?" She commented lightly.
"Now you're bringing this Cajun down, chére. I always thought I was aging beautifully." I offered with a smirk, she flashed me a little smile.
"So, Remy, would you tell me if… I mean, will I ever gain control of my powers? God help me if I don't. I'm enjoying this, us here, so much. Will I be able to live like this again, touch people?" She asked timidly.
"You will, chére. You will, don't you worry. And it won't be too much longer, okay?" I press a tender kiss on her forehead. She's smart, she knows this means goodbye.
"So, is this it? Was that all you had to do?"
"Well, in fact, I have something else I need to get done, but it's not about us. I'm helping a friend."
"I bet all my gold this good friend of yours is a woman, a beautiful one, ." I chuckle at that. My femme knows me so well. "So you don't deny it?" She insists.
"Love you when you let it show how much you love me."
"Uh? I didn't say that! Remy LeBeau!"
"Don't be jealous, chére. I wouldn't be here if you weren't my all-time number one, now would I?" She pouted and I kissed those defiant lips. "I'll see you in five years, okay, chére?"
And with that, I left her behind, stunned, watching me as I went. She watched me go with a puzzled expression on her face.
I just can't wait to get back to my own timeline and see if this little encounter of ours has changed our future. Oh, Etienne, my son, I hope to see your smiling face when I make it back.
Author's Notes:
Hello again, dear readers.
I hope you enjoyed this chapter and, as always, if you could spare a minute of your time and review, it would make this author very happy.
Also, I wanted to thank my dear friend kataract52 for hearing me out and bouncing off ideas as I blocked a little before putting to words how I wanted Romy's encounter in the past to be like. She was joking when she suggested he put up a musical, I guess. The little poem she came up with made me laugh so hard, that I had to find a way to insert it here in the dialogue. I hope you enjoyed it too. BTW, Kat has many many good stories and just done a new one on Nate Grey, if you're interested in that character, you should check it out.