Disclaimer: The characters and events depicted in this story are fictional. Any similarity to any actual person, living or dead, or to any actual events, firms and institutions and other entities is coincidental and unintentional. The story is based on Dokyusei written by Nana to which permission to use its plot has been granted by the author. All characters used are the legal property of Marvel and its constituents.

Attitudes & Feelings, Both Desirable & Sometimes Secretive

Chapter V : You Can't Always Get What You Want

Remy suppressed a chuckle when he saw the girl glare.

So he had not imagined it.

The fact that he was able to elicit this kind of reaction from her was enough to prove his point – an investigation into this girl was clearly in order.

Now that they were face to face, Remy realized with some surprise that the girl was pretty. How or why he was not aware of this when he first saw her in the cafeteria was beyond him. True, her gothic make-up was gone and her altered uniform was replaced with the standard track uniform, though he was surprised she chose to wear the whole thing on this sweltering fall day. But to be perfectly truthful, it was not her features that had drawn his attention. What he had found intriguing had been the cold disapproval so evident in her voice. He had to admit THAT was new.

"What are yah doin' here?" hissed Rogue as soon as Scott was out of hearing range, her southern accent deepening.

Remy raised an eyebrow behind his sunglasses. "Aw, where's de love, chère?" he asked with a hint of mockery in his voice.

Much to his amusement, he saw her brows twitch, but to her credit she did not rise to the bait.

"Forgive Remy if it were a memory lapse on his part, but do Remy know yo'? De way yo' have spoken earlier gave him an impression dat yo' seem t' know Remy very well," he drawled with a smirk, the tone of his voice masking the fact that every word he had uttered was calculated to draw out a reaction from his prey.

Rogue responded looking the Cajun right in the sunglasses and undaunted by his charm, "Yo' wouldn't know meh. And no, ah don't know yo' very well. Ah don't have to. Ah know enough 'bout swamp rats lahke yo'."

She realized she was being rude, but the fact that he even dared to show up here to taunt her was an affront of the highest level. 'Damn glasses, ah can' read his eyes with them on.'

As it was, there was no need for camouflage. And therefore, no need for pleasantries.

"Cute pet names already, chère?" There was a distinct glint in his eyes although Rogue couldn't see anything. This was getting to be more and more interesting.

Her glare intensified. "Don't call meh that."

"Oh, I see. Y' want a name all f' y'self," he smirked.

"Ah'd prefer it if ya kept yer names t' yourself, swamp rat. That French crap ya throw around tah anyone with a pair of long legs 'round here won't work with meh," she said. 'It was disgusting how he could say French sweet nothings to anyone there and instantly he'd have girls wrapped around his finger!'

He seemed to have not heard her comment or chose to ignore it since he continued talking.

"Bien, yo' from Mississippi, non?"

She didn't dignify that with a reply.

He laughed, low and dark. "Den that would make yo' a river rat, non?" he pointed out with a subtle delight in his voice.

"Keep talkin' lahke that, swamp rat, and there will be nothin' fo' those bimbos to gawk ovah," she glared.

"Really?" There was a distinct glint in his eyes although Rogue couldn't see anything. This was getting to be more and more interesting. "An' how did a belle fille such as y'rself come t' dat conclusion?"

"Look," Rogue said bluntly. "Tah put it simply, yer reputation precedes yah, Cajun. The only reason why ah spoke up was because Kit's new here – yah're bein' unfair. Give her a break, she doesn't know the ropes t' this school yet."

Remy laughed softly, his eyes hardening at her words. "An' do yo' always judge a person by his reputation?"

"Well, judgin' from what yo' were doing tah Kit in the cafeteria, yer reputation held true, didn't it?" she flashed, annoyance getting the better of her. "And if yah-"

She stopped as she realized what he was doing. He was provoking her, compromising her, enjoying himself at her expense. In short, he was playing with her. Anger abruptly flared inside her, causing her cheeks to flush. She instantly regretted washing off her makeup for practice.

"What do yo' want with meh?" she snapped.

His smile widened. "Do yo' really want t' know, Rogue?" he asked, a slow shit-eating smile spread across his face. "But Remy think yo' already do, don't yah? Back in de cafeteria, yo' started it all by calling to Remy. Well, here he is."

"Ah did NOT call t' yah, yo'…swamp rat!" sputtered Rogue as his words hit home. 'The guy was hopelessly disgusting! How could he possibly…'

Remy chuckled as Rogue realized yet again she had been provoked by one of his tricks.

She could feel the hairs on her nape stand on end.

'The guy was implying she had willfully diverted his attention onto her, the lecherous Cajun! She had not thought of it that way at all! The only reason why she had spoken out was because he was at it with Kitty, a potential friend. Now, she briefly wondered if she had made a terrible mistake after all. This person was formidable. And right now, she had his full attention, alright.'

But Rogue was not a girl to back down from anyone, although she realized she had to change tactics in this situation, and fast. Letting out another word against this master manipulator – captain of the debate team, for crying out loud! – would prove unwise. He was simply going to twist it around to serve his purposes.

Defiantly, Rogue stared back at him, her chin lifted. Remy felt a flash of admiration for the girl.

"Rogue…" he breathed, pulling off his sunglasses to reveal his red and black eyes. "An unusual name…" he said staring at her intently.

'W-what…?'

Rogue was slowly finding it difficult to breathe, but she stubbornly held on, willing herself to meet his gaze. His eyes almost seemed to glow.

"De name suits yo'," he finished abruptly. Suddenly, he dropped his tone, and Rogue stood there, dazed. She felt as though she had just come out of a heavy spell.

"Tell Summers I'll be goin' ahead," he said, no longer speaking in the third person. "I suspect I'll be seeing mo' of yo' soon, Rogue." A quiet, definite emphasis on her name, and then he had turned his back and was walking away, leaving Rogue to deal with her confused thoughts as they came crashing in.

Remy crossed onto the other side of the track oval without looking back, feeling a strange elation coursing through him.

'Merde,that felt good. That felt really, really good. It had been a long time since he had last flirted like that. And the girl Rogue was showing a lot of promise of being more interesting than the girls he usually pursued and discarded. She was showing signs of being able to last a few rounds. He liked that.'

He strode over to where faithful Lapin was waiting for him.

"How did it g', Remy?" he piped in as Remy approached.

"Better dan expected," he said, pleasantly. "What else have yo' got on her?"

Lapin checked his notes. "Well, not much in de way o' personal information. She's got a half-brother an' lives wit her parraine."

"What's her relation wit Summers?" Remy wanted to know.

"Well, dey were in the same junior high school together, both also on the track and field team. So dey must've known each other fo' quite a while."

"Yet Summers has a girlfriend," observed Remy.

"Jean Grey," Lapin affirmed, looking up at his friend. "But dere's no indication dat Rogue an' Scott like each other dat way," he said, logically.

Remy's eyes narrowed as he remembered how Rogue had looked as she approached Summers. Well, that was before she realized he was there. Her reaction to his presence was quite another matter, entirely.

Now why did he get the impression there was something in the way she had looked at Summers?

At any rate, it was too early to tell.

"Fill meh up on what she does after school," he instructed Lapin. "Everythin' – where she hangs out, her favorite color, food, movie – de works."

Nothing can galvanize Remy Lebeau into action as much as a challenge can. What he had in his hands was a girl of stone. It's time to show her who he was – whether she likes it or not.

To be continued…
Read & review!

- Swing

Chapter Track: You Can't Always Get What You Want - The Rolling Stones (Let It Bleed)
French lexicon

belle – pretty

chère – dear

fille – girl

merde – damn (or shit depending on the context)

parraine – godmother

Many thanks to the reviewers so far…anyone interested in being my beta for the story? The position is up for grabs.
Star - I loved London…despite being very busy and I barely knew where I was when I was there. It was so expensive. Windsor was not worth the train ride it took to get there. My friend was obsessed to eat British ice cream; she dragged me all over Windsor looking for an ice cream shop. We found Ben & Jerry's. It was odd she only knew it wasn't British ice cream until we exited the store and read her ice cream cup. The spoon was from Singapore. The castle there was huge…so many rooms…we got kicked out of the gift shop for sword fighting…all in all, a good day. :D I absolutely need to save my money and go back one day. I wish to be as well traveled as your step-nan. We should all appreciate the giggle loop! My intro to psych class never did that…This chapter Pete doesn't say anything! But don't worry, he'll be talking up a storm later…and you can comment all you want on my attempt at writing his accent :D

cooltangerine – ROMY is the true X-Men classic romance. I love love/hate relationships. It's why I watched the X-Files for so many years…and fell in love with Firefly…this is the first time I'm writing an X-Men fanfic, I usually write original works that have sooo many love/hate relationships my sister begs me to write in a normal couple...this chapter is devoted to ROMY, I hope you enjoy!

ELLIEdangerous – Me too! I know you'll love this chapter! ROMY all the way! Thanks for your support.

NaijaStrawberrie – You are so ace! You are the first and only person to review all my chapters! I'm so happy you love the story!

BrOKeN dArK ANgeL – 13 isn't an unlucky number, it's my birthday, so either I am super lucky or I was born under a bad star…I choose lucky. Wittle Remy isn't playing fair…darn that Cajun charm. Roguey can handle herself…

sakura jade – I will!

Cuadernos – I love ROMY too!