Summary: The three acolytes (Remy, Piotr, St. John), have moved into the Xavier Institute. Despite being a great addition to the team, their shady pasts are what keep them out at arms distance. (AU: DoR never took place and the acolytes' reasons for staying with Magneto are different than the show.)

Disclaimer: I am sad to say but I do not own X-men, marvel, or any of its associates

Author's Note: I know that we all love Remy's past and all, but I will tweak it a bit. One will be his apparent agoraphobia. For those that don't know, agoraphobia is the fear of unfamiliar surroundings (not to be confused with cenophobia, which is the fear of open spaces). Symptoms include – fear of crowds, restriction to the home or residency, and in extreme cases, panic attacks (Agoraphobia is actually fairly common amongst thieves, since they like to know every possible escape route and know everyone they're up against). However, I won't bring up his agoraphobia yet. Sorry, but I can't seem to fit Mr. Sinister into Remy's past without screwing up any of my future plots. Anyways, please enjoy the story…

Chapter 3: Dazed and Confused

School seemed a blur for Remy, his focus reeling from the clock on the wall to the inner confines of his backpack. He could already feel the pull of his powers, aching to be used. John had woken up from his light nap when the teacher returned from the teacher's lounge and was getting a lecture about his boorish behavior during class.

Remy felt more self-conscious about his surroundings, the cool metal on the chairs seemingly screamed for him to charge it. John returned to his seat next to Remy and went on a rant about his next story; however Remy's attention faded in and out of the tale. The teacher, a middle aged woman, seated herself in front of the class and declined to read a novel.

Remy slid into the pouch of his bag and found what he had been looking for, a small plastic container. John looked at his friend with mild interest as Remy frantically opened the container. He heard a string of French curses slip out of his young Cajun friend as the bottle revealed nothing inside. The normally calm and cool façade that Gambit was revered for dissipated and Remy clutched at his chest as he hyperventilated.

"Wot's eatin' ya mate?"

"Non, non, non! Dis ain' good John. Ah ran out…" whispered Remy frantically.

"Ran out of wot?"

"Mon medicine... We got t' get m' outta here John. Ah don' t'ink Ah can make it t'day."

"Shit! Remy, y' were supposed to make'm last a couple months. We can't go back ta Jersey now!" said John, a little too loudly.

Remy wiped the sweat that suddenly appeared on his brow as he struggled to maintain control. He could gradually feel his empathy extend its reach towards the outer reaches of the school and his mind was bombarded with a surge of uncontrollable teenage emotions. The room expanded and he watched as the clock spun wildly out of control.

"Je taime Remy…" said an innocent blond as she buried herself into his chest.

John watched in horror as his friend was tearing himself apart to get a hold over his powers. He distracted the rest of the room's occupants in the room as he motioned for Remy to escape. Remy stumbled out into the school's hallways and the exit seemed to extend from his reach. Feelings of lust, anger, and aggression, most likely coming from the football stadium, attacked Remy's senses. He cradled his head as he walked towards the parking lot.

"Ha, Ah knew it mon frere. Ah tol' ya dat ya could b'come a t'ief. An' you were worried," whispered another ghost of his past.

All he had to do was make it towards an abandoned area and let loose. Remy knew that wouldn't be the last of his problems, he still had to explain to John and Piotr why his supply of pills had already depleted.

"Ah'd nevah let mon soeur be wit' a t'ief lahke you. Ya ain't even a real LeBeau!" yelled an irate man as he brandished a gun.

"Remy! Wha' 'ave ya done!"

"Mon frere, hehe, Ah can' feel mon legs."

"At approximately 9:24 PM, the Entergy IMAX Theater collapsed. Many were wounded and it has been confirmed that twelve lay dead under the rubble."

"Hey kid, I saw what ya did back there. If ya want to control dem powers of yours, I'd be willing to oblige, for a price of course."

~&~

Remy hadn't noticed, but he was slumped over Logan's motorcycle. His consciousness seemed to slip as he constantly had to return the kinetic energy into his body. The large strain prevented him from riding off into the distance. Remy last conscious thought before succumbing to darkness was to keep his shades on.

Remy was running through thick forests for several days. When he thought he could settle down, his powers would reemerge and blow another thing up. He sat down in the middle of an empty glade and for the first time in years, he allowed himself to shed tears. Tears mixed with the nonexistent blood that stained his palms but haunted his dreams. Blood that he knew he could never get rid of.

He always thought that tears were a sign of weakness and had resigned from shedding them after his many years on the street. Crying. He had never done so when he was adopted by Jean-Luc. He didn't allow himself to cry in front of the man that took him in. Remy refused to cry out of happiness, sadness, or pain. Nothing could ever make him shed a tear.

Remy was proven wrong that one fateful night. The Assassins were fairly protective of their own, but Julien was just being an older brother. It had nothing to do with the fact that he was a LeBeau, a thief, or street trash. Julien knew of Remy's sexual exploits and had invited himself and a choice number of 'friends' to accompany him and Bella on their 'date'.

Belladonna Boudreaux, a true angel (if the angel was a trained killer), that had met Remy during his days as a street urchin. She was the one that had coined his name Gambit, as he risked his neck to save a falling angel from her doom. He would later find out, that the girl in question didn't need help and was in fact escaping a very intense game of tag with her brother.

The two would meet again as Remy was soon adopted in the Thieves' Guild. The two met as Remy was officially inducted as a thief. Remy and Bella would build a long lasting relationship that bordered beyond friendship, though the two would never admit it. Bella would always define their relationship as best friends and Remy wouldn't contest that, for fear of rejection.

But that all changed on their date. Remy felt nervous about being alone with Bella, so he had his brother Henri join him. He didn't count on Julien being there, but it had put his mind somewhat at ease. Even though they were technically his enemies, he knew that Julien wouldn't be stupid enough to risk the treaty over something as trivial as a date.

His luck had run out as he felt the pull of his powers and objects and people alike began to glow that familiar magenta as he looked in their direction. Remy failed to withdraw the energy and tried to escape, but a column lining in the wall blew up as he escaped and the building began to collapse in on itself.

"Remy! Wha' 'ave you done!" a cry escaped the lips of his beloved as she struggled against the debris.

"Mon frere, hehe, Ah can' feel mon legs," groaned his brother as the columns crushed his body.

"LeBeau…" said Julien solemnly, as he knew his death was immanent. Remy stayed in the parking lot and looked at the carnage that he had created.

He was alone again. He knew he couldn't go back home and he didn't trust the man that had spoken to him, moments after his most tragic moment. Just as he thought that his powers couldn't get any worse, he was wrong.

Sight and touch, two of the senses that he treasured the most, were taken away from him. Remy jerked his head as he heard a rattling sound. On the ground before him, was the same pills that had been promised to him by that man. Remy cautiously looked up to see a fully armored man.

"Why, aren' ya dead?"

"What ever do you mean, young Remy LeBeau?"

"Ah mean… how'd ya know mon name?"

"I know a lot of things Mr. LeBeau. In fact, I know that this is the only material that is immune to your kinetic abilities… that is unless you concentrate on it. I suggest that you take those pills . I had a fairly difficult time procuring those for you while at the same time trying to track you down."

"What do ya want?" asked Remy as he cautiously popped a pill into his mouth. The strain that he once felt from the pull of his powers simmered down.

"Me, I want to teach the human race that we mutants are the superior beings."

"Why do ya need me?"

"Honestly, I don't. I don't need you as much as you need me. Besides I can't have you taking pills to control your power, that's unnatural. No, I will guide you in your control."

"Wha's the catch?" Remy allowed his calculative thief persona take over.

"The catch? The catch is that I train you to the best of your abilities and you will provide your services to me."

"Whoa homme, Ah don' swing dat way." The grin on Remy's face widened. A small smile worked its way onto the man's face.

"I assure you that this would be a strictly professional partnership."

"Well, wha'd Ah ya then?"

"Call me, Magneto."

"Jesus Christ Gumbo, ya gave us all a scare." Remy awoke up to the sterile surroundings of the Med Lab. Several of the X-men, particularly John and Piotr, surrounded his bedside. Logan hovered over the young Cajun with his claws unsheathed.

"God, I hoped ya didn't die. It would've sucked if I didn't get to kill you first for stealin' my bike," said Logan as he pointed his claws at him for emphasis.

~&~

AN: Yay, for the first time I'm actually early. Well this chapter is really short, but it's been on my mind all week and I couldn't wait to post it. As you can see, I only showed minor tidbits of Remy's past, on the assumption that most of us already know it and this chapter actually turned out much better than I imagined. Anyways, on an unrelated topic, I'm a ranked swimmer :). I'm the only freshman on the team that's ranked. If you're still reading this thank you, I practiced really hard to finally make it. On the swim team, we only have fifteen spots that go to the best swimmers on the team and I made it to number fourteen. As for the next chapter, please don't expect it real soon. My practices have doubled since I achieved my ranked status.