MINUTE

/mīˈno͞ot/

adjective

Extremely small. So small as to verge on insignificance.

So the plan is to build a collection of short stories revolving around Rogue and Gambit. Each chapter will try to flesh out an idea or inkling that my muse has been relentlessly pelting me with for months on end. So hopefully now they'll all have a home. (Or a dumping ground, depending on which way I'm squinting.)

The chapters won't necessarily be connected to one another, and they may or may not follow any type of X-Men canon. Some may deviate slightly. Others will probably mash things up into shapeless mounds of clay. I personally like exploring alternate universes, so there will probably be a few of those skulking around every now and then.

Of course, the common denominator for each installment will be Rogue and Remy, and letting us catch a glimpse of their life together, no matter how minute. (And thus the title and all...)

This may very well be the triple threat that finally takes Gambit down.

CHAPTER 1
Trifecta

"You realize who ya dealin' wit' yet?" Gambit demanded, brazenly spreading his arms out as wide as they would go. "I'm de King o' T'ieves. You t'ink you scare me? I've gone toe t' toe wit' a whole bunch o' baddies tougher dan you, let me tell ya." He squared his shoulders and locked his gaze onto the figure before him.

"Are you seriously challengin' yoah three-month-old daughter ta a starin' contest, Cajun?" Rogue called from the kitchen, where she was cleaning up the lunch dishes.

Remy didn't break away from the mock-glare he was pelting the baby with. "Tryin' to, chère, but it ain't fair she got dose pretty green eyes o' yours. T'ink she already knows how much dey distract me. She's usin' dem t' her full advantage."

As if in response, the infant babbled gleefully and stretched her tiny hands up from her blanketed spot on the plush carpet.

"Nuh-uh, I know dat look." Her father shook his head firmly. "You know it's naptime, petite. We can play all ya want later, but right now you gotta sleep." For a second, it seemed as if she understood his words and pouted in response. "You tuck dat lip away now, bebe."

Gambit reached down and tenderly scooped his tiny daughter up, supporting her head with his left hand. She happily blew a spit bubble at him, which he wiped away with a small towel draped on his shoulder. He couldn't resist pinching her plump, chubby cheek, which earned him a sharp, disapproving cry.

"She hates that, you know," Rogue stated, joining them in the living room. Cozying up behind Remy, she wrapped her arms around his waist, and then reached out to lightly tickle their daughter's side. "Avianna Marie…" she cooed.

The infant's face lit up and she attempted to turn her head, searching for Rogue, who remained partially shielded by Remy's taller frame.

Gambit grinned proudly. "She knows de sound o' ya voice, chère. She's lookin' f'r you."

Rogue shared his smile, calling out playfully, "Ava…" Popping up from behind Remy, she sing-songed, "Peek-a-boo!" The baby squealed in delight. Continuing with the impromptu game, both Rogue and Remy marveled at the simple joy Ava got from seeing her mother appear and then reappear again and again.

After a few minutes, Remy finally interjected, "While I hate t' be de one t' break up our li'l trio here… Petite, would you please ask ya maman how she expects you t' take a nap when she's playin' wit' you an' keepin' you wide awake?"

"Okay, fine," Rogue relented, stepping around Remy to place a loving kiss on Ava's forehead. She turned to leave, but as an afterthought, she said, "Why don'cha sing her a lullaby like you did th' other day, sugah? She loves hearin' yoah voice too. Maybe that'll get her ta sleep faster."

"You t'ink so? 'Cause it's lookin' like dis bebe has some other kinda ideas." He once again attempted to stare his daughter down, but finally decided that she had indeed inherited her mother's stubborn streak, and left that battle for another day.

Willing to try another tactic, Remy shifted Ava in his arms and began to hum lightly, cuddling her close to his chest so that she could feel the faint vibrations made as he softly serenaded her. Soon, the repetitive melody of "This Little Piggy" was slowly lulling the infant to sleep.

"Now, ya maman would be tellin' you 'bout de usual pigs goin' t' markets or eatin' roast beef, or other such foolishness," he disclosed to the child, "but don' you pay no mind, y'hear? Got an even better version f'r ya t' remember, petite."

This little thief-y swiped pretty gemstones.

This little thief-y stole gold.

These two thief-ies robbed a big mansion,

and quickly had all the pickings sold.

This last little thief-y traveled the whole world,

from London to Paris to Rome,

casing city after city, and bringing her treasures all the way home.

Each line was emphasized with a gentle wiggle of the accompanying toe, earning Remy a number of giggles and drowsy smiles with every verse repeated. Finally, after several cycles of her father singing, Ava drifted off to sleep.

"Sugah, y'know Ah hate ta admit it," Rogue called softly from the doorway, where she had been silently observing, "but that honey-colored voice o' yoahs gets her ev'ry time. Too bad Ah ain't a baritone like you," she quipped, sidling back to his side. "Last night, it took me more than an hour o' 'Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star.'"

"Might as well admit dat it gets you too, chère," Remy whispered in reply, purposely dropping his voice to a smoky timbre and favoring her with a knowing wink.

"Ah'll admit ta no such thing, mister." The quick kiss she planted on his cheek betrayed the sternness in her words. Again turning her gaze to their napping daughter, Rogue let out a heavy sigh.

Remy looked up at the sound, concerned. "You feelin' okay, mignonne? Ya not overdoin' it again, are you?"

"Hmm…?" She seemed distracted for a moment before focusing on his question. "Oh no, Ah'm fine... Ah was jus' wonderin' how yoah gonna keep up with Ava when she's older, seein' as how she's already got you wrapped up tight around her finger — 'sactly like that last li'l thief-y, who brought all her treasures home."

He raised a skeptical eyebrow. "What're you talkin' 'bout? Kids love me. Babies love me. 'Specially my own." He motioned to Ava as proof.

"Oh yeah, o' course they do, sugah." She stroked his arm in a gesture of reassurance, but Remy could hear the "but…" comment turning the corner. "But Ah was jus' thinkin' 'bout when she gets older. You know, when she starts noticin' boys… or starts datin'…"

"Datin'?" That grabbed his attention right quick. "Jumpin' de gun a whole lot dere, chère, don'cha t'ink? She ain't even out o' diapers yet, an' here you got her out on dates already?"

She held up her hands in submission. "Ah know, Ah know. It's way too early fo' all that." Rogue lovingly smoothed a stray auburn curl on her daughter's forehead. The baby was still sleeping peacefully in her father's arms, stirring only slightly at her mother's touch. "Like Ah said, Ah was jus' thinkin' about it. Rollin' it around in mah head… After all, she's gonna be a master thief someday. Considerin' she's th' Princess o' Th' Thieves Guild, that's a given. Ain't no way yoah not gonna train her. We both know that."

Remy nodded his agreement. Although they had never discussed Ava's participation in his family's business, it could easily be assumed that Remy would want to oversee her thief training himself. A part of him warmed at the thought of Rogue inherently knowing that, even without him voicing it out to her.

Continuing, Rogue stated, "Then there's her stubbornness." She raised a hand to stop his objection before it even had the chance to form on his lips. Remy was mentally laughing, barely able to keep the smirk off his face. They both knew exactly where their daughter's headstrong disposition came from. But one of them was in definite denial — and it wasn't him.

"Look, jus' so we can avoid gettin' inta th' Great Debate o' whose darlin' personality she got that one from, let's agree that even at three months old, Ava's very… strong-willed."

Remy did laugh out loud at that, not even bothering to hide his snarky grin. "Dat's an interestin' way o' puttin' it, mon amour."

Rogue shot a scathing glare at him, but his cocky smirk remained steady and unyielding. Damn Cajun. She decided it was time to knock him down a few pegs.

"So, as Ah was sayin', swamp rat," she drawled, innocently looking up at him with wide doe eyes. "Pretty soon we're gonna blink an' realize that we got a hormone-filled, boy-crazy teenager on our hands. Most likely she won't listen ta either you or me, an' she'll be able ta pick any lock, door or vault that gets in her way. You realize what a crazy combination that'll be, right? Ragin' hormones, pigheadedness, an' mad thievin' skills — th' trifecta o' any adolescent rebellion. Groundin' her is gonna be pretty much pointless."

The nearly infinitesimal widening of Remy's eyes would have gone unnoticed by most people, but not Rogue. She caught the half-baked panic creeping into his expression. With all the whirlwind, life-changing events they'd gone through in the past year, Gambit clearly hadn't given much thought to the inevitable parent-teen angst that would come their way.

Rogue shrugged her shoulders, seemingly oblivious to his growing anxiety. "Yoah right though, Cajun. We're gettin' ahead o' ourselves. We got a ways ta go before any o' that happens."

If it had been possible for her to physically step into Gambit's mind at that moment, she would have jumped at the opportunity. She was sure she'd see all the gears and cogs spinning around a mile a minute as her words sank in.

"You all good with gettin' Ava settled in th' nursery, right, sugah?" she inquired casually, already making her way down the hall toward their bedroom. She knew it was wrong of her to let Remy stew in his overanxious thoughts, especially considering she'd been the one fanning the flames of paranoia. She was feeling a little guilty about it.

She was.

A little.

But it was way too much fun to let him stew, even just for a little while.

It was a good ten minutes before she heard his footsteps follow her into their room. Without preamble, Remy announced, "We get her a chastity belt, an' den break de lock so it can't ever be taken off. If we can't buy one, den I know a guy…"