* Peaks head around corner * Hello? Is anyone out there? It tis I, amsanch. I have returned from my oh so hectic world, and have made my way back home to the world of fanfiction! It has been way too long, and for that I am sorry! I had much going on, and I didn't want to half-heartedly write my story. Good news is now I can give this story my full attention! Thanks for sticking with me guys and gals…you rock!
Chapter 21
Not This Again
He was really beginning to hate this area of the mansion. He hated the stark white walls, and the tell tale beeping of the monitors. He hated the smell of the extremely sanitized rooms. Why did all medical rooms smell the same, no matter where they were located?
He hated looking at her frail form and seeing her color fade every day, as if a little bit more of her was disappearing right before his eyes.
But most of all, he hated that he had not been able to speak to her since they left the now destroyed Trask island.
Rogue had been in a coma for about a month. The professor had informed him that due to the fucked up situation that she had been in, her mind kind of temporarily shut down. Of course, he had phrased it in a much more medical and professional manner. The good news was that he also stated that everything appeared to be normal in her head. She was basically in a dream like state.
There was also the little fact that the thing Sinister had tossed in her direction, while she was controlled by Ms. Marvel, may have completely zapped her powers away permanently.
He was anxious for her to wake up. He felt like the whole messed up situation was his fault. If he had just told her that he was going back to New Orleans to divorce Belladonna, they would have never gotten in that fight. Even though they made up after Kitty and Peter's wedding, things weren't quite like they were before.
At the moment he couldn't care less if she woke up and hated him for the rest of her life. He just wanted her to wake up!
He slumped over in his chair, and ran his hands through his hair. How the hell was he going to tell her about Emma? And Mystique? He could only imagine how the conversation would go. 'Oh hey, glad to have you back! Oh, and by the way, your best friend died and so did your mom. Want to hang out later?'
He leaned back in his chair and slowly rubbed his hands over his face. His facial hair had grown out quite a bit, and he wasn't accustomed to the feeling of the coarse hair that long on his face.
He had barely left her side when they arrived back at the mansion on that day a month ago. Everyone one was in tears and emotionally drained.
Their leader was almost as bad as him. Speaking of One-eye, he hadn't seen him around for a while.
He heard the footsteps of someone approaching, and wasn't surprised when he saw Wolverine poke his head around the corner. The other man was there just about as much as he was. "Any changes?"
Remy slowly shook his head. "No."
Logan took a seat by the bed. The Cajun needed to get out of this space. He was a free spirit, and these four walls would be the death of him. "I'll stay with her. Go wash up, and do us all a favor and shave that shit off your face. You look like you should be making duck calls"
Remy smiled slightly at Logan's attempt at humor. He was actually surprised that he even knew what Duck Dynasty was.
He slowly stood up from the couch that had been brought into the room. It had been his resting place for the past month. "Thanks mon ami."
The gruff man grunted in response, and Remy left the room.
As he passed a nearby window, he looked out on the mansions grounds. His eyes wandered over to the lake, and he was immediately reminded of her. It was one of her favorite spots. There was a small wooden gazebo located right next to it, and she would often escape there for hours, often reading one of her cheesy romance novels that she thought no one knew that she read. He also would often find her on the dock, just sitting at the edge with her feet dangling in the cool waters.
He smiled at the memories of their younger days.
A faint cry from one of the rooms above brought him back to present times, and he continued his journey to the upper levels of the mansion
He felt slightly guilty because he had not really visited Scott, Jean, and the new addition at Xavier 's.
Since the encounter at Trask island, the atmosphere in the mansion had changed completely. Christian rarely left his room, while Scott was never to be found. Kitty and Piotr unwillingly left to visit his side of the family overseas, and the Professor was either checking in on Rogue or in his study.
The new school year would be starting again soon, and at least that would bring everyone back to mansion. Hopefully, it would bring back a sense of normalcy as well. At least that is what he hoped.
He decided to take a quick detour and at least check in on Jean.
He gently knocked on the door, and was welcomed with a soft reply saying, "Come in˝.
As he quietly opened the door, he saw Jean in a plush rocking chair by the window.
He had to give the woman some credit. Despite the emotional roller coaster of a situation that Jean had gone through, she took on the role of a mother without any hesitations.
She glanced up in his direction, and gave him a warm welcoming smile. He felt slightly guilty under her gaze. He should've checked on her more often.
He took in her appearance. Although she looked tired, and not much like her usually primped self, she did look happy. He was brought out of his thoughts when the little pink bundle began to move and make faint whimpering cries.
She quietly made hushing noises, and changed the infants' position to her shoulder. She then began pacing a series of soft taps on the babes' small back.
She rested her head back on the chair and slowly closed her eyes. After a few brief moments of silence she finally spoke. "She has been really fussy lately."
She brushed her hair out of her eyes. "You'll have to excuse my appearance, you're lucky that I even brush my teeth."
He smirked at her and replied, "You're a good looking woman no matter what you do."
He then changed his expression to mock a serious one. "Trust me, I understand. It's a curse to be this good looking."
She rolled her eyes, and had a sad smile on her face. "I wish Scott thought so. I know he is going through a grieving stage, but in a way, so am I."
Remy shifted his weight and stuck his hands in his pockets. He was never good at these types of conversations. In his lake of the woods, they weren't necessarily raised to wear their hearts on their sleeves.
As if she was reading his thoughts, she smiled at him and said, "I'm sorry. I don't expect you to say anything. I just wish he realized I am doing this on my own, and it is a lot to handle."
The redhead had always been bright and optimistic. Now it looked like she had lost some of her luster. The thought made him angry. He would have to have a little talk with Shades.
He was brought back to the current situation when the wails of the baby increased. He unwillingly tensed, and Jean gave him a sly smile.
"You know, since you're here I might as well take a shower. Mind watching her for a bit?"
Before he had a chance to protest, he found himself holding the tiny babe at arms length. Jean rolled her eyes, and adjusted the baby in his arms so he held her in a cradling position.
He stiffened his arms.
Sure, he had been around kids, but at the time he was just a pup himself.
As if on cue, the little infant began to bawl. He quickly turned to hand her back to Jean, but the sneaky woman was already halfway out of the door. He heard her when she was already half way down the hall. "I'll be quick!"
He stared at the now empty doorframe in disbelief. The little baby's cries started to get louder. He tried to mock Jean's bouncing motions, and that just seemed to make the baby cry even more.
He suddenly had an idea. He was surprised he didn't think of it earlier.
Sure, his empathy powers were shadowed in comparison to his primary abilities, but they did have a slight influence over emotions, and he was planning to use it on the wailing baby he currently held.
He again held the baby out at arms length, and did his best to change his voice to baby talk mode. "Alright little girl, look at uncle Remy."
Apparently, she had other plans and cried even harder, which resulted in her squeezing her tear filled eyes even tighter.
He sighed in defeat.
He decided to change her position, and placed her against his shoulder. As he was transferring her to her new position, her eyes locked with his own.
Ironically, he didn't even have to use his empathy. The tiny infant stopped her crying as soon as she gazed into his ruby eyes.
He was absolutely positive, that at any given moment the baby would start screaming.
His eardrums and himself braced for impact.
However, he did not expect what happened next.
Her bright blue eyes took on a half moon shape, and one corner of her mouth lifted ever so slightly, awarding him with a hint of a smile.
He couldn't help but smile back. Suddenly, the thought of fathering children was not such a scary idea.
The moment was interrupted when he heard a snicker from the door. Jean walked in and relieved him from his duty. "I saw that. You actually got her to settle down! And you got rewarded with a bit of a smile! She is a preemie and only four weeks old, so you should feel honored! Who would've thought that the great Casanova himself had a way with children!" She then turned towards the baby and widened her eyes while raising her voice a thousand octaves. "Megan, who would've thought that uncle Remy was so good with babies! "
He shrugged his shoulders. "Not a Casanova anymore cher. I'm a one-woman type of guy now."
Jean gave him a sad smile. "She will wake up soon. I just know it."
"I hope you're right. We don't know what the hell that thing did to her." He turned to make his leave.
"Hey Remy?"
"Yeah?"
"If you see Scott, will you tell him that I could really use his company right now?"
"You got it."
He finally headed to his own room. Scott Summers was really starting to piss him off. The guy had some nerve. He knew that one eye was depressed, but tough shit! He had a baby girl that needed him. He also had a loving fiancé who was crazy enough to forgive him of all of his past transgressions and raise his child as their own. The guy needed to get it the fuck together. Quick! He didn't realize how lucky he was.
He quickly took a shower, and shaved. He stepped out of the shower and wrapped a plush towel around his waist. He took a look at himself in the mirror and examined his reflection. "That's much better."
He walked over to his dresser and opened up his top drawer. An object fell out and bounced on the floor. He held his towel around his waist with one hand, and bent down to pick up the small item. A smile crossed his lips when he realized what it was.
In his hands, he held a small stuffed bear that held a deck of cards. Rogue had given it to him on his seventeenth birthday. Although he played it cool when the gift was received, deep down he cherished it. He had been lavished with fine things his whole life, but this was the first time someone gave him a gift that actually meant something.
He propped the stuffed toy up on his nightstand. The memory of her giving him the gift made his heart ache.
He missed her.
He never realized how empty his life would be without her. He felt the sudden urge to be by her side, and quickly dressed himself. As he made his way back to the med bay, he heard some sort of commotion. His brisk pace turned into a full-blown sprint towards her room. He abruptly ran into Wolverine, who was clearly trying to block the entrance to Rogue's medical room.
The gruff man shoved his hands against the younger mans chest. "You can't go in there just yet…"
Before he had a chance to finish his sentence, Remy grabbed him by the scruff of his shirt. In a surprisingly cool demeanor, he said, "Get the fuck out of my way old man."
Wolverine growled in response. "I'll let that slide this one time Cajun. You don't want to go in there right now. She's awake, but she ain't exactly acting like herself…"
Remy decided to ignore the older mans warning. He didn't care what state she was in. If she was showing any signs of life, that was enough for him.
He slowly inhaled and gathered his composure. "I don't care what I find in there. As long as she is coherent, I can handle it."
The gruff man ran his hand through his hair. "Fine. Just take things slow with her."
Remy looked at him with a confused expression on his face.
Logan brushed past him making his way towards the exit. "You'll see what I'm talkin' about."
Remy shrugged his shoulders and turned back towards the entrance to her room. Whatever was on the other side, he could handle.
He slowly straightened out his attire and took a deep breath in. He didn't know why he felt so nervous.
He opened the door, and saw the best sight he could possibly see at that moment. Although a bit on the thin side, she looked as if nothing had happened. She was sitting up in her bed, propped up by some pillows. She was speaking quietly with the professor.
He couldn't contain himself, and his emotions got the better of him. He quickly ran to her side and wrapped his arms around her. He gently placed his hand on the back of her head to bring her closer. He was so over run with different emotions that he couldn't speak. All he could manage to get out was, "I've missed you so much."
He felt her hands rise to his chest, and slowly push him back. He quickly grabbed her hands within his own. He didn't want to lose the close contact so soon. He knew that there was a possibility that she would hate him, and he told himself he would be able to deal with that. But now that she was awake, he wasn't so sure.
When he pulled back and took in her face, he became concerned. She looked as although she was studying him, and she had a look of confusion on her face.
And then, for the first time in a month, she spoke. "I'm sorry…Do I know you?"
To be continued…
Sorry that this chapter is on the short side. It is a filler for what is about to come! I will put a new chapter very soon!
