Disclaimer: I don't own X-Men:Evolution or it's characters. Just my OC, Molly Callum/Creature and any original characters/background characters that may pop up from time to time.
AN: Small wedding night references here and the like.
The time for dinner soon came around after they got back. Molly expected it to be wholly awkward, being the first real night spending time with Magneto and his Acolytes.
Remy and Molly entered the dining room hand in hand. They'd had a long conversation on the way back concerning the idea of a prenuptial agreement. Remy hadn't been too keen on the idea, convinced their love could get them through any obstacle and that they'd never, ever divorce, but Molly had gotten him to warm up to it. After putting out several reasons why it was a good idea, stroking his ego, calling him the most handsome man in the world...and bumping their future spending limit back to its original 800 dollars. It was a small sacrifice for getting her way, even if it left a lot of wiggle room for them both to go nuts shopping.
They sat in their usual spot between Kitty and Kurt. "So, how's things going? Picked out a dress yet?" Kurt asked.
"No, of course not. That comes later. We haven't even told my folks yet," Molly said, "But thanks for the interest."
"Oh, okay. I thought you did that first or picked out a cake or something," Kurt said, clueless.
"Don't worry, we're learning as we go ourselves. First time for both of us," Remy said reassuringly.
"Yeah," Ray looked at them from across the table, "First time for something else too. You gonna shot-put the midget into the bed or make it in the closet at the reception? Or maybe she's too shy and you'll never get some, Remy."
Molly almost couldn't control what happened next. All she knew was she was seeing red, and she was a tiger in seconds, leaping up onto the table and staring, not just inches, but mini meters at Ray's face. She was snarling and breathing heavy. Molly was barely aware of everyone around her yelling at her to stop and calm down, but she wasn't listening. She'd been never more furious at Ray. How dare he! Something so personal, so precious to both of them, and Ray was talking about it where everyone could hear!
Two masculine hands pulled Mollys huge orange, furry face out of Ray's sight, and Molly found herself staring at a dead-eyed, very serious Logan. He said nothing, instead just stared her down, his strength and dominant demeanor snapping her out of her rage and back into a quiet submission. Molly blinked a few times, made a chuffing noise, and Logan finally let go of her. Molly changed back and got off the table, her face hot for more reasons than one. "S-sorry everyone."
"You and me. Talk. Outside," Logan said.
They went out front where no one could hear. It was just her and Logan, no Remy. And for good reason. Remy had kept his composure. It was Molly that had lost it. She could've killed Ray, seriously killed him, if she'd been even a little bit angrier.
"Everyone heard him!" Molly spoke first.
"I know."
"I couldn't _help_ it. I did it before I even knew what was happening. I just..." Angry tears reached Molly's eyes, "Remy and I have done everything right. We've stayed pure. It hasn't been easy for him or me. And we're that close and Ray does that. He hates me. He's always hated me, but this took it too far. I know I did too. N-now everyone's going to be scared of me, aren't they? They've never seen me do that."
"They know you and they know what you're capable of. Even Ray. I never understood why he picks on ya, but he pushes you because he wants a reaction. Good or bad. I know what it's like to be on the edge and I don't blame you for losing it, but the other teachers won't. Either learn to not react, or come to me for help. You shouldn't keep going like this."
Molly took in Logan's words. It seemed impossible for her not to react. "Okay... I need your help. Please."
"Tomorrow. Danger Room. Right after breakfast. No excuses," Logan said.
"Yes sir,"
"Congratulations on the engagement, but do you need me to set the Cajun straight about boundaries? Is he getting more hands-y with you now that you're almost down the aisle?" Logan glowered.
"No. Remy's been a perfect gentleman. He said, he's, um, kind of saving it up," Molly said.
"Alright, but does that mean I need to talk to _you_ about boundaries? You obviously understand that sex is off limits, but I don't want to catch you two bed sharing or trying to experiment, now that you're engaged. No loopholes." Logan seemed to be keenly aware that Molly's passion and love for Remy ran just as strong as Remy's. Logan didn't see her as the pure and good girl like everyone else seemed to paint her as. He saw Molly was human and who could slip up and had lust and curiosity on the brain. Who wanted Remy bad enough, even if she didn't advertise it to everyone.
"We won't. None of it. I want to give myself to Remy, whole and complete. No surprises, no loopholes. He wants the same thing, as hard as that might be to believe," Molly said.
"Alright, kid, but maybe, I don't know, you should think about getting a couple chaperones. It would make the rest of us feel better, anyway," Logan said, rubbing his neck before leading them back inside.
"Yeah, maybe," Molly said.
By the time they went back into the dining room, Magneto and the Acolytes were sitting down in various spots and everyone was eating.
Molly watched as Ratchet and Glow signed to Bliss, passing her bowls and platters. The teachers drank wine, everyone else had soda or water.
It was a much calmer and more pleasant experience than Molly had expected.
"You okay?" Kitty said in a hushed voice.
"I'm better. We'll talk later," Molly said.
Remy said nothing, just squeezed Molly's hand while looking at Ray like he had an ax to grind. A big ax.
"Rock slide," Kurt piped up, "Can you pass the salt, please?"
Molly watched as the giant boy made of gravel and stone gingerly picked up the salt shaker with careful hands.
Hmm. Maybe he and Piotr would get along, as they had something in common.
Not that Molly expected everyone to get along as well as she and Glow had, but it was always a possibility.
Looking around the room, their enemies seemed to have a great deal in common with themselves. Both Ratchet and Darkness had a dark, somber look to them, wearing all black, like Rogue. Glow seemed to have a cheery personality like Kitty, smiling a lot and laughing. Rock slide shared Piotr's hulking, massive frame and was rather unique looking, like Kurt. Bliss was watchful and very quiet, like Scott or Molly. Finally, Molly looked over at Magneto, and thinking about Mystique who was eating somewhere downstairs in the lower levels. They seemed to mirror the Professor and Ororo's relationship perfectly. Two older men of wisdom and leadership, who had the tutelage of their teams to consider, who chose to have strong, beautiful women as their right hands and seeming advisors in times of crisis. Molly found it rather fascinating.
All that said though, as many things as they had in common, trust wasn't given automatically and had to be earned. It was going to take time for them to trust each other, much less like each other.
Remy, Kurt, Molly and Kitty adjourned in one of the rec rooms after dinner. Everyone wanted to hash out "the incident" and bash Ray. Molly couldn't blame them, but still felt at fault for what had gone down. It wasn't entirely on Ray, her reaction was a big deal. Hopefully Logan could help her work it all out. If anything, he was tough on her. Remy, and even the other teachers, were too light with her. Logan spoke his mind and didn't treat her as frail or weak. Molly had every confidence that Logan would help her through her issues.
"I can't believe he'd..." Remy trailed, "Who does he think he is?! I had to walk away just to compose myself long enough to finish dinner. You weren't the only one about to kill him, Petite."
"Please don't put it like that," Molly frowned, "Be angry at Ray all you want, but I'm a mess. There's something wrong with me if I'm going to go ballistic like that. So, tomorrow, Logan and I are going to do some training. Enough is enough with me losing it. I love you guys, but if I don't get control over my emotions, one day I could really slip up and the worst could happen.-Don't say it couldn't. It could."
Everyone stared at her with wide eyes, more than shocked. "Baby," Remy pulled Molly to him in a hug that lasted several minutes. He looked at her, seeming to find the right words. "If you say it could, I believe you. I understand how much your emotions are tied to your powers. How they don't always show themselves like you want them to or how your inner rage releases itself to match, but at least I know, deep down, you could never hurt me or your friends when it comes down to it."
"He's right. You'd never hurt us," Kitty smiled, putting a hand on Molly's shoulder, "We all have negative aspects with our powers, that's a fact. Even if you slipped up tonight, you didn't hurt Ray at all. You were just trying to put him in his place. He deserved it. Your relationship is between you and Remy, no one else. Especially, uh, the important stuff." Kitty blushed.
"Thanks Kitty," Molly smirked, "Kurt? You've been quiet all night. What's wrong?"
"I agree with Kitty, but when I heard what Ray said, it made me pretty furious," Kurt's hushed tone was unusual for him. This was more serious than they'd seen him, "I was ready to defend yours and Remys honor. What I was thinking...it...it scared me."
"We all wanted a piece of him," Remy said, "And we've all got a dark side. You're not going to do anything to Ray, even if you were thinking it, Kurt. Thoughts are only thoughts, not actions. Understandable if they scare you, but you're still our endearing Fuzzy Elf at the end of the day."
Kurt looked more relaxed, smiling a little. It warmed Molly's heart to know that Remy knew just the right thing to say to make Kurt feel better, and that Remy was such a sweet, caring guy.
"So we're agreed, Ray's a giant scumbag gutter trash," Molly said, "If the Professor doesn't punish him somehow, Remy and I will talk to him. Anyway, there was something we wanted to talk to you about..."
"It's early, but we decided, we want you to be in the wedding party," Remy said, "It's only natural. You've always been there for us and were rooting for us to get together from the start. Especially you, Kurt."
"We'd love to!"
"Vunderbar! We're here for you, buddy!"
"Did you guys pick out a maid of honor and a best man yet?" Kitty questioned.
"Remy's got his brother, Henri," Molly smiled, "But, actually Kitty, I was hoping you could be my bridesmaid. You're my best girl friend and I can always count on you. Will you be my bridesmaid?"
"Yes, Molly! How could I say no!" Kitty hugged Molly hard.
"No hard feelings, right hommes?" Remy looked at Kurt.
"Hey, brothers come first. I'm just happy to be included," Kurt smiled, holding up a hand, "You never told us you have a brother..." That launched them into stories about Remy growing up and what his older brother was like. Molly looked around the room, smiling at her friends and fiancee. The wedding-though they were speeding through the planning faster than most others did-was going to go well no matter what happened, because like always, they had their friends behind them.
A day went past with nothing huge going on. It was soon Thursday morning. The day before they were going out to announce the big news to Molly's family. Molly couldn't wait, but felt a little bad they were going to be among the last to know, when in other circumstances, they definitely would have been the first. But Molly's life hadn't been normal since the day she turned into a bunny rabbit all alone in her apartment, so she knew the details of her wedding wouldn't be either.
Like falling for Remy hadn't.
Like Remy falling for her hadn't.
Like admitting they loved each other hadn't.
Molly stared at the ceiling, letting out a quiet sigh. Their romance had been a whirlwind adventure so far. What would the future hold if their dating life had been so eventful? Probably more of the same, as long as they were X-Men. Molly was happy to keep saving the world with Remy. It made life interesting, if nothing else.
Molly got up quietly, so as not to wake her new roommate, getting her bathrobe and heading to the shower. Remy ran up to her, wearing his own black bathrobe, his hair still dry. He hadn't showered yet either. "Molly, hey. Uh, good morning."
"Good morning yourself, handsome," Molly wrinkled her nose, cutely shaking her head at him with a smile. Okay, so they weren't usually so...gooshy...but, sometimes he just made her feel like acting like an idiot in love.
Remy smiled at her silliness, rubbing her head. "I was just thinking last night, we should start taking care of the little stuff. Look at flowers and decorations. If nothing else comes up today, we can go out and do that, what do you say? I know we're moving fast with this, but I figured it's an ongoing thing, and we can just look. We don't have to make any concrete decisions, but the months are going to go by fast. Not everything is going to fall into our lap like setting the date and picking out the wedding party."
"Yeah, I know. Sounds good to me! I'm up for whatever you want to do, Remy," Molly said, ever flexible. He had a point, but he left out that their lives were so chaotic, it was no wonder they were trying to make the big decisions early. Sometimes they just had no time for anything outside of being X-Men, and there were other days they were bored out of their minds, but those seemed rare anymore. It was unspoken, but a true fact. They needed to take advantage of whatever time they had to get things done.
"Okay. After breakfast, we'll find some florists and, uh, places that sell wedding stuff," Remy smiled, bending down to kiss her, "Enjoy your shower, my love.
"Uh, I still have my training with Logan, but right after we can. I swear. And same to you, sweetie," Molly giggled.
"Right. I forgot all about that. After then," Remy left her.
Molly showered for a little longer then normal, lost in thought. She knew her head was going to be in the clouds the next few months. Every girl seemed to space out at least a little during the special time between the engagement and the wedding. Jean certainly had. Some days, Molly and Kitty practically had to bring out the cannons in the twenty-twelve overture just to bring Jean out of her dreamy stupor, zoned out to stare at nothing, back to reality. It happened at Breakfast, lunch and dinner and after missions. If it had happened on missions, Molly was certain half the team would be dead.
With that, Molly seemed to float down to breakfast, all smiles this morning. Her heart was soaring today. Remy soon joined her, looking to share her overly happy mood as he sat next to her quietly, smiling hard. He gave her a playful shove on the shoulder, and she pushed his chest, ending up in clasping hands to push against each other a few moments, and then Remy tickling under her arms. She would've slid out of her chair if he hadn't grabbed her face to kiss her forehead repeatedly. This was _a lot_ more goofy and silly then they usually got in the morning, but neither seemed to care. They were engaged and it made life that much more filled with rainbows and joy and utter, complete _happiness._
... Unfortunately, the rest of the school didn't see it quite that way.
"You guys are going to make me lose my appetite," Rogue groaned from across the table, "Can't you, I don't know, limit that stuff to when you're alone?"
"Come on, Rogue," Remy said, "We're not being that bad!"
"Yeah, I'm gonna agree with Rogue," Scott said, who'd been sitting next to her with Jean on his right, "You kind of are."
"You always think so," Remy soured.
"I would like to disagree," Piotr spoke up, next to Rogue, "Remy and Molly are right to enjoy their morning together. They have just become engaged. We cannot expect them to be...how you say...destitute of feelings. They are most happy. They have many years of joy ahead."
"Thank you, hommes," Remy said, "At least someone's in our corner."
Magneto and the Professor came to the table considerably late then most mornings. Logan followed, sitting near Ororo.
"I trust everyone slept well?" Charles asked.
"As well as can be expected...when I've got an angel tucked away in another room, running through my mind, keeping me awake all night," Remy rubbed Molly's neck.
"You're impossible," Molly smiled huge.
"You're impossible to put up with me all the time, Petite. I love you for it more and more," Remy mused over her.
"Ah, yes," Magneto spoke up, "Charles informed me of your recent engagement. Congratulations!"
Molly gave pause. Magneto was sitting there, actually happy about it. Smiling for them even.
"Thanks," Molly said slowly, unsure of how to react.
"... Uh, thank you," Remy looked just as perplexed of his former boss, "We didn't think you cared...so much."
"On the contrary. I love a wedding. Even if I'm not invited, I wish you all the best. I actually never thought I'd see the day someone would make Gambit this happy, much less get him to commit.-I trust Molly knows you were, shall we say, a bit frivolous in your previous many relationships.
Stacked the deck, as it were."
"I know, trust me," Molly said, "Remy was always popular with women, that's no big secret."
"Likewise, I am Molly's first relationship," Remy smiled proudly, "So at least I have a lot of experience where she lacks, but it's been amazing all the same."
It hit them that they were suddenly talking comfortably with one of their worst enemies, like he was anybody else. Surprise covered their features, and they both clammed up, going back to eating. Like, what the heck? Was Magneto that disarming at the breakfast table, or did Molly and Remy flaunt their relationship that much that they could talk to almost anyone about it like it was all normal. Molly wasn't sure, but she didn't want to start getting chummy with Magneto after everything that had gone down. He was a house guest, nothing more.
After Breakfast and a short kiss with Remy, Molly went and got suited up to meet Logan in the danger room. She was, understandably, apprehensive about it. This wasn't about training to fight evil, this was about controlling her emotions and reactions. Something she'd fail to do numerous times and, despite being in a school to learn to control her powers and how to react to many situations, had never gotten a handle on how to handle...herself. Emotions were tricky. Molly knew when to be serious and that not every situation called for humor, but learning how to control her anger and her temper? This was all going to be new to her.
Logan had tried once before to help, but it obviously hadn't stuck. After Molly had destroyed the front entrance of the school to save baby Dylan, Logan had given her pointers and a lesson in getting out her aggression, but not controlling it. Not taming it.
Not that Molly was an aggressive person by nature. Everyone agreed that she was timid, almost passive, in her day-to-day life. It was when people pushed her buttons, made fun of her, or hurt her friends that the worst of Molly came out. Molly never liked it about herself before her powers, but hated it more after. She'd never killed anyone, but she knew turning into powerful animals gave her the upper hand. The ability to kill a person within seconds-without thought, in a breath-was in her grasp. She sometimes wondered where she would be if Magneto or someone like him had found her first. His ideology wasn't exactly unfounded or purely evil, once you got down to it. He wanted to protect his kind, but terrorism wasn't the right way to go about it. Molly could've been swayed to his side, even if she had a good heart. But that wasn't the here and now. Molly knew she could get this problem under control with a little practice and a lot of time.
Molly stepped into the Danger Room, finding courage. Logan was standing there, looking eager to start.
"What are we going to do first?" Molly asked.
"Confrontation," Logan said simply.
The Danger Room door opened to reveal... Ray.