Happy Holidays everyone! So I've just been itching to see this chapter go up. You see, it's actually torture to have a monumentous breakthrough when writing a story, to have everthing figured out and come to gether so perfectly, and then have no one to share it with because it would ruin it for those who are actually interested! BAH! Then I'm torn between posting right away and waiting for more reviews. But this time, like many other times in the past, I caved. Sad for me, awesome for you.
Now onto the reviews... inTHEgrid, no you spoil me!!! Your reviews are so lengthy, and I love reading them! This next chapter is gonna give you a heart attack...I can't wait! Oh, I'm evil. And I can't believe my writing has made it to "rereadable"! Yeesss!!! P.S. Your review has one the gold medal! I'm anxiously awaiting the next... a platinum, perhaps? Remy'sRose, I'm soo sorry to hear you've been sick Here's the secret remedy...chicken soup and fan fiction. See? You're half-way to recovery! Now, I hate to say that I'm not fully into the play-by-play of sex scenes...I like to leave it to the readers imagination...it allows the reader to emotionally connect with the story in their own personal way. But honestly, this chapter is officially dedicated to you :P On a scale from 1-10, tell me how whopping it was. Now go eat that soup, curl up with a nice cozy blanket, maybe even by the fireplace, and get well!!! PeppermintLove, seriously, I never said no sex before marriage! There will definately be a lot of "checking", and a lot of Gambit being "bad". Hahahah! P.S. I know...It's me and you babe! Roguechere, Blah blah blah blah. You know it, uh-huh, yep. Blah blah, here's the "deal"! RogueishLeia, You can't die! I'll miss ur reviews way too much. No, I'm not a shipper for medieval torture techniques... I'm more modern, like a firing squad or a machete ...Riiggght, moving on... he's gonna get what's coming to him. He's not gonna be so innocent either, so it won't be really weak, I can promise you that. Actually, when I was rereading what I had wrote, it felt very true to the characters, very real...to me anyway. And since I know you so well, I have this feeling you're gonna enjoy it. :P Hawaiichick, don't feel bad for him...he's a strong man, and he makes his own decisions. And when he's gone, he won't really be gone... I can't say any more than that. Keep reading, and you'll understand.
SO HERE'S THE DEAL: We're getting to the last few chapters of Part 1... I think I'm planning one or two more. Now is when I'm getting really excited because this is when the story actually starts. I know I've been updating frequently, but I wanna see some newbies reviewing. Let's try to make it to 45/46 reviews. Then I'll be in writer heaven. I think I've made you wait long enough, so it's time to get on with it.
Onward and Out.
Prof. H. H.
DISCLAIMER: You know the drill, it all pretty much belongs to Marvel ...I'm just the pupeteer (dance puppets, dance!)
"Should we tell de others?"
"Ah have a bettah ideah. Why don't we tell them tomorrow?" Rogue motioned her head towards her room down the hallway. They had made their way back to the Institute, finding that everyone had either gone to bed, or at least retreated to their rooms for the night.
Gambit lifted one eyebrow and grinned devilishly. "Sound like a plan." He leaned down, and placing one arm behind her shoulder blades and the other behind her knees, he swooped her up into his arms and headed for her room.
Dropping her playfully on the bed, Rogue giggled and scooted closer towards the headboard. Remy closed the door, and before they knew it they were making out passionately, wrestling with each other's stubborn clothing.
Rogue had successfully removed Gambit's top and, with his help, his jeans. But, Remy was so caught up in the moment; he hadn't been able to lift her top over her head without breaking lip contact, so he resigned to the fact that it just didn't need to be removed…yet.
Suddenly, he felt Rogue stiffen in his arms, and he looked to her face. Her jaw was clenched and she was growing glassy-eyed. He stared at her quizzically for a moment, and then sank into a sitting position next to her on the bed, his arm wrapped firmly around her shoulder.
"Chère, y' not ready for dis, it be okay."
She shifted uncomfortably, turning her upper body to face him. She lacked the strength to look him in the eye, so her eyes rested on her fidgeting hands.
"Rems, yah have tah know… " She bit the bullet. "Y'ain't mah first."
Gambit tried to stifle a short laugh that shot out from his mouth, feigning a cough. Dat be all? Dat what dis femme be worried about? He hated to admit his weaknesses, but he really was looking forward to their first night together. Alright, he had always lived with the fantasy that he would be her first, and no other guy would be in the equation. Just Rogue and Remy. But, so what? In retrospect, it was an imprudent dream, for this allowed him to appreciate their moments together even more.
"Girl, Gambit don't care none!"
"Yeah, but Remy, Ah love what we already have togethah. What if this ruins it?" She glanced up just in time to see Gambit's stunned expression melt into one of deep hurt and despondency.
His mouth worked soundlessly for several seconds, only giving a soft response when he felt his heart show signs of activity again. Thu-thump.
"Ruin?"
She spoke slowly, carefully choosing her words. "Ah didn't… enjoy… it half as much as… Ah thought Ah would." Her gaze finally met his, and her face was tarnished with regret and anxiety. "Please Remy, please don't hate meh."
Instinctively, he reached out and grabbed her arms to pull her close, to show her how intimate they could be without any of the pressures of sex. However, he was shocked to see her wince and recoil at his touch, something she almost always invited nowadays. He started to frown, lines building over his brows. Following a sudden moments thought, he pulled her shirt sleeve up to reveal skin of black and blue, a succession of bruises lining her forearms.
A torrent of raging emotions were mounting inside of him, but Remy kept his voice steady and unwavering. "Joseph?" He hissed.
She nodded meekly and opened her mouth to explain, but he didn't give her a chance.
"An' tell me dis, Rogue. Did y'ever ask him t'stop?" His eyes glowed dangerously, and his grip tightened over her wrists.
"Yes, but Ah –"
"And?"
Her eyes seemed to sag with self loathing and disgust. She couldn't believe she was screwing this moment up. What's wrong with meh? This coulddah been it for us! He's angry, Ah know it! If Ah loved him half as much as he loves me, Ah coulddah just gone along with it all, and… She shook the thought from her head. There was no going back now. "He did, after a while. Listen Remy, forget it. Forget Ah said anything, just –"
Gambit jumped up, sheer repulsion smeared across his face. He stormed over to his pants and swung them on haphazardly, wildly throwing himself into the pant legs. After fumbling unsuccessfully with the buckle, he nearly blew up his belt in frustration before whipping it halfway across the room.
"Remy, Ah'm sorry. Please…" Rogue begged, fighting through her gathering tears.
He turned on the spot and grabbed her shoulder, positioning them nose-to-nose. They were so incredibly close that she could feel the heat his body was emanating. Rogue noticed that it took every ounce of his being to keep himself from shaking with rage. "Don't you EVER" he yelled, jabbing his finger into her chest, "EVER apologize f'r expressing y'feelings again, DO YOU HEAR ME?"
"Please Rems, Ah…Huh?"
He then presented her with his opened hand, implying that he wanted her to join him somewhere. She apprehensively placed her hand in his, and he began leading her towards the door.
He marched her through the halls of the mansion, deliberately pounding the floor with each step he took. Lights began to flick on in several rooms, leaking out between the cracks of the doors, spilling into the dark corridors. Gambit kept up his rushed strides, almost dragging Rogue by the arm so that she would keep up to his momentum. She began to panic silently when she recognized where he was heading.
"Gambit! No!" she whined. "Yoah upset now. Y'all can talk in the mornin' after yah cool off."
It was no use. Kicking the door open with his foot, Gambit switched the light on in the room. "Get up!"
A confused and tired Joseph squinted against the bright light in his quarters. Moving his hand over his eyes to block out the incriminating light, he cleared his throat and turned to read his digital alarm clock.
"Rogue? Gambit? It's nearly 2am! What's going on?"
A few other X-Men had stumbled into the room now, yawning through tired expressions, visibly upset by their rude awakening at such a late hour. Storm, Bishop, Wolverine, Nightcrawler, Jean and Scott peeked in from the door, evidently just as perplexed as Joseph was.
"What the hell is this all about?" Scott demanded, desperate to get an answer quick so that he could crawl right back into bed with his wife and try to salvage the rest of the night.
"Exactly what I would like to know." Joseph fired back cheekily to Gambit.
"Joseph was jus' about t'explain himself, mon ami." Advancing fast, Gambit wedged his lower arm under Joseph's chin and slammed him against the wall. Joseph groped at his neck trying to break free, but it was no use. This was definitely one determined Cajun.
"Gambit! Stop this!" Storm shouted, but he didn't listen.
"Rems, calm down –" Rogue tried to quiet him by talking in a softer tone. She was also still pretty shaken herself, and finding her voice was proving quite difficult at the moment.
With some compliance, Gambit loosened his hold slightly so that the man stopped turning blue. Gambit's face darkened drastically as he yelled to the room "He raped Rogue!"
"No he didn't!" Anna-Marie disputed, speaking louder than before.
"He pushed y' t'have sex when y'didn't want to, bruised y'up real good, and didn't stop when y'told him t'get off! Sound like rape t'me!"
Rogue opened her mouth to protest, but no words escaped past her lips. She then closed her mouth, thinking hard. She would never have thought of it that way, not in a million years. She had always excused Joseph, accepting that his actions weren't intentional, pushing aside her own personal pain to save their relationship. But in retrospect, it couldn't be any clearer.
"Oh, well in that case…" Wolverine rushed Joseph as well, wielding his silver claws with a distinct 'SHINKT' sound.
"STOP!"
Everyone's head swiveled to land on Charles Xavier as he wheeled past the crowd into the room. "Gambit, Wolverine, release Joseph."
The two exchanged infuriated glares, and with a reluctant grunt Wolverine retracted his claws. When Gambit didn't move, Rogue calmly walked over to him and placed her hand on his shoulder. "It's okay sugah."
Slowly but surely, Gambit removed his forearm from Joseph's neck and watched him fall in a heap on his bed.
"I feel this is a serious issue that must be resolved in the morning, after we have all had time to take control of our tempers." And at that, the Professor ushered all of his X-Men out of the bedroom, leaving Joseph to rub his tenderized neck.
Rogue and Gambit walked back to her room in silence. Closing the door behind them, they sat down next to each other on her bed, not once saying anything or even looking at one another. It had all happened so fast, and Rogue hadn't had time to let her feelings settle. Remy didn't push her, either. He just sat still, looking at the blank wall and door in front of him, waiting for his breathing to slow. The more she thought about it, the more it made sense to her. And they both felt the same way. Acting on impulse, she leaned over and kissed him gingerly on the lips. He barely moved; let her kiss him softly and gently. She pulled away only a little, her nose touching the side of his, and waited. Soon enough, they were right back where they had started. He was on his back, and she was straddling him, leaning over his rising and falling chest.
"C'mon, it's okay. Y'don' gotta do dis just 'cuz –"
"Ah know that." She grinned, leaning in closer to kiss his neck. "Ah'm fully aware."
As she pressed more of her upper torso into his, she felt completely reassured. She saw it over and over again in his blazing eyes; they took her in with absolutely none of that animalistic yearning or desire, but with a calm sense of understanding. No man had ever looked at her that way before. Clutching her abdomen tight in anticipation, she felt a tingling heat rise from her stomach and rush to her head, encouraging her tightened muscles to unwind in the moment.
Still skeptical, he placed his hand on her cheek. "If y'change y'mind, jus' speak up an' Remy stops, no questions, chère."
Rogue nodded and turned her head slightly to kiss the inside of his palm. " 'Kay."
But she never needed to say anything.
Not even once.
SNEAK PEEK:
Just then, the last remaining seat at the table was host to a subtle 'Bamf', and Nightrcawler magically materialized in the chair. It was the cue the professor had been patiently waiting for, and he began to address the crowd.
"Good morning, my X-Men. Now that we are all here, it seems that we have some issues to discuss." The Professor swiveled round to face Rogue and spoke gently, even in her mind. "I understand that this is a sensitive issue, Rogue, and we do not usually make…personal matters…public knowledge, but there appears to be some discrepancy on how to deal with the problem."
Rogue lowered her head, feeling her cheeks burning bright red from embarrassment. "Yes, Professah. Ah still don't know if Ah'd call it rape, though…"