Hi, readers… actually I only know about one person who's reading my story… so if you're not that person and you're reading, please review.

Well anyway, here's the new chapter, I hope you like it.

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Chapter Three – Fading Past

The current X-men

The next morning everyone was tired from the fight and woke up later than usual, except for Rick Summers, who could only sleep a few ours. He started to get used to the fact that every time he closed his eyes he was his sister, every time he fell asleep he dreamt about Lynn and every time he woke with a start he called he breathed: Linny.

He was confused, disappointed and more and more hopeless.

Early in the morning Rick was already in the kitchen, drinking his coffee. And even a casual thing like coffee brought up memories.

**********************************************

Flashback

Seven years after they lost their parents (except for Jean Summers, who'd been taken away to Africa with Jubilee and Beast to help there and it was forbidden to them to meet their family again or even write a letter to them) Rick had his chance meet Adeline again. The nineteen-year-old girl was back to the mansion. She lived at least half of her life in France, so she wasn't too talkative in this part of the world, but Rick guessed it was only a matter of time.

On the third day that she spent on the mansion, Rick got up at five in the morning to train some more than he used to. He was very surprised to find Adeline up so early.

She stood by the kitchen table and poured milk in a glass.

"You're up already, French girl?" Rick asked her as he walked closer.

"Non. Ah'm still up. An' Ah'm not French."

"What do you mean you're still up?"

"Ah work on nahght shift."

"Helping at a bar?"

"Stealin' stuff."

Stealing?

Of course, he should have known.

He made a small cough in embarrassment.

"I see. And what about the training session?"

"What 'bout it?"

"We start at eight."

"Uh-huh."

"You're training with us."

"Non."

"You have to."

She smirked at him.

"Ah know what Ah'm 'bout t' say will probably shock ya, but Ah really don' give a damn 'bout dis trainin'."

He really looked shocked.

"W-wait, you can't just skip it like the chemistry class."

"Regarde-moi."

Rick frowned.

"What?"

"Ah said: watch me."

Rick's frown grew deeper.

"You really don't care about it, do you?"

"Ah don'."

"You're just a cheeky southern girl, I guess."

"Y' have no idea."

He shook his head now smiling at the girl's behavior.

"What are you drinking?"

"Jus' milk. Y' wan' somet'in'?"

"Not milk."

"Coffee?"

"Yes, please."

She turned around and took out a cup from the cupboard.

"Sugah?"

"Yes, what is it?"

Lynn stared at him blankly for a moment then a grin appeared on her face.

"When Ah said sugah Ah didn' mean you, y' idiot, Ah jus' asked y' if y' wanted any sugah in y'r coffee."

Rick's face turned deep red as Lynn started to laugh loudly at the sight.

**************************************************

No matter how many times he said he hated that girl, he knew it wasn't true. No matter how much they hurt each other, he was still hopelessly in love with Adeline LeBeau.

But now he had no time to think about the past. The present and the future were much more important.

Rick stood up and left the kitchen heading for the training room.

****************************************************

The Thieves

Lynn was up all night, thinking. She also waited for Rebecca to come home. Charlotte was sleeping on the couch as always and she woke up every two hours as always.

As Lynn walked into the living room, her sister woke again, trying to catch her breath.

"Another nahghtmare?"

"Non. 'S de same one every single nahght."

"'Bout how dey killed papa and momma?"

"Ah shouldn' remember dat, Linny. Ah was only fahve."

"Ah'm so sorry y' had t' see dat."

Charlotte stayed silent, tears rolling down her face. Lynn handed her a tissue and kissed the top of her head.

Charlotte grimaced.

"Ya know Ah hate when y' do dat."

"Yep, Ah do."

"An' y' know Ah'm not a kid anymore."

"Yep, Ah do" the other girl said cheekily.

Charlotte chuckled, forgetting about her nightmare.

"What tahme is it?"

"Half past fahve."

"Den where's mah coffee?"

It was Lynn's time to let out a soft chuckle.

About ten minutes later they heard a very quiet noise. Those who were not professional thieves wouldn't even have heard it, but they recognized the click of the front door instantly.

Rebecca's high heels made their soft sounds on the floor as she came into the kitchen where her sisters sat.

She sniffed in the air.

"Hmmm… Mornin' coffee…"

"Y' should be t'inkin' of y'r evenin' cocoa" Adeline scolded lightly.

For a moment Rebecca was silent.

"Y're rahght Ah guess. Ah'm gonna sleep. Don' wake till two."

With that she left as quickly as she arrived.

Shaking her head, Lynn went after her and caught her before she could reach the room she shared with Chris.

"What?" Rebecca asked as Lynn's thin fingers grasped her wrist.

"Sorry."

"Fo' what?"

"For practically callin' y' a whore yesterday. I wasn' t'inkin'" she muttered.

Rebecca's frown turned into a bright smile, but didn't say anything.

Her sister sighed and continued.

"Ah know y' wouldn' do somet'in' lahke dat."

The younger girl didn't stop smiling, but Lynn noticed a bitter look in her green eyes."

"Y' know…" Rebecca spoke "Ah really love Chris but if… if dere wouldn' be any otha' way t' help mah family Ah… Ah'd do it."

"What?"

"Have sex fo' money."

"Rebecca, y' know damn well Ah would neva' let y' do dis."

"Who said Ah'd tell ya 'bout it?"

"Shut up. Y' can' t'ink of dat. Y' can' jus' sacrifice y'self f'r us."

"Really? Den what 'bout ya? Y' left de man y' love."

Lynn gasped. The shock paralized her for a minute, then…

"Y' li'l rat! Y' planned dis. Y' made me t'ink... jus' so y' can have y'r li'l revenge…"

Rebecca was grinning now.

"Touché" she whispered sweetly, then her expression changed when she took a deep breath "Ah jus' wanted ya t' see, dat y' keep torturing y'self and dat Ah hate t' see y' lahke dis."

"Ah love 'im. Ah do, really. But Ah'd leave 'im a t'ousand tahmes jus' t' keep mah fam'ly safe."

"He's part of our family, too."

That moment, Adeline LeBeau felt like her heart skip a beat and there was a pain in her chest, but her face showed nothing. It was almost emotionless, but not for Rebecca, who could read her sister like an open book, and Lynn knew that very well. Still, she acted as if nothing had happened.

"Y'r family doesn' put ya in danger" she said firmly and turned to get back to the kitchen.

Rebecca watched her sister disappear from her sight, shaking her head sadly.

'Seems lahke Ah'm de only one t' be t'inkin' straight here, huh? Ah was always told Ah was too much lahke papa. Ah s'ppose dat's a good t'ing dese days' she thought to herself as she walked into her bedroom to get some sleep before the rest of the family would wake.

After she had changed, she planted a light kiss on her sleeping lover's lips and fell asleep soon.

Back in the kitchen Charlotte was making breakfast while talking to Lynn.

"So did y' t'ink 'bout what Helen said?"

"Ah don' t'ink Ah unda'stand what ya mean."

"Merde, Lynn, do y' ever listen t' what Ah tell ya?

"Sometahmes Ah do, Ah guess."

"Listen, forget 'bout Rebecca an' her big mouth an' try t' concentrate. Ah was talkin' 'bout de Christmas gifts we're supposed t' buy."

"Oh… y' mean de clothes."

"Y' got it. De omelette's ready."

Christmas… The thought of that hit Lynn again. In her mind she saw that perfect Christmas she first met Rick. Not only that fact made that day memorable for her. Then her parents were still alive.

****************************************************

Flashback

Everybody was sitting by the huge dining table. Lynn had asked her papa to get her some food from the big plates. While she waited for her dinner, she found that Rick was looking her way, smiling. He was sitting by the other side of the table next to his mother. Shyly, she smiled back at him, but then immediately turned back to her father who gave her a small amount of food – perfectly enough for a child like her.

The food looked delicious, so she really wanted to try it, but she was taught she should wait till everyone else had theirs.

When they finally started to eat she was kind of disappointed. It looked much better than it tasted.

She looked at her momma, but seeing that she was feeding Rosie who sat on her lap, she turned to her papa for help. Unfortunately for her, he was busy trying to get Rebecca to eat.

Lynn didn't give up.

"Papa!" she whispered.

He didn't hear her weak call, so she tried again, a little bit louder.

"What, petit?" he asked looking at her.

"De food…"

"What's wrong?"

"It doesn' have a taste. People don' use spices here, papa?" she whispered into his ear, afraid that someone might hear her.

Of course, she was a child, her parents didn't give her dishes that were too spicy, but what she just put into her mouth tasted like paper. To her, even salt was missing.

Her papa grinned at her.

"Y'r new friend's momma never really knew 'ow t' cook. But be a good girl an' eat at least half of it."

Lynn hated that her parents didn't talk to her in French anymore, only at home. She didn't like to talk English all the time. It was annoyingly strange.

"Je ne veux pas. C'est horrible (I don't want to. It's horrible)" she said, louder than she wanted to.

"Horrible" Rebecca repeated before Ella told her to be quiet.

"Sugah, what's the matter?" she heard her mother ask.

Before could've had a chance to answer, her papa already started the explaining, whispering to his wife who had to suppress a laugh.

Lynn pouted.

"Ce n'est pas rigolo. (It's not funny)"

"It's okay if ya don't lahke it, sugah" her momma said caressing her face "Ya don't have to eat it, but then ya won't get your dessert. Ah'll give it to papa."

"T'anks, chère" she saw her papa grin.

Lynn glared at them. Parents could be so mean sometimes.

"Come on, sugah, eat it."

"Only if y' promise me de dessert's gonna be sweet."

Her papa chuckled at her words, but nodded anyway.

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Charlotte looked up from her breakfast only to see Lynn smiling.

She didn't ask why. It was enough to see that her sister was okay for now. They continued to eat silently.

A few minutes later Sophie appeared.

"Mornin'" she said quietly, sitting down next to Charlotte.

"Hungry?" the auburn haired girl asked the blonde.

Sophie shook her head and Charlotte stood up.

"Fahne den, Ah'm gonna be in de bathroom if ya need me."

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The Rebels

"Lewis, I'm going back."

"What? Why?"

Lewis Howlett stared blankly at the woman in front of him, not understanding her sudden change of mind.

"I have to, Lewis. You know why."

He suddenly found it very hard not to laugh.

"Listen, he's almost 27, do you really think he needs you to baby-sit him?"

Emma was walking in circles in the middle of his room, thinking on what she should say to make him understand how she feels. She stopped abruptly, looking up at the man's face.

"Please, Lewis, just think about this whole situation from Rick's point of view. He lost his family, his girlfriend and many of his friends and…"
"Let me correct you" he interrupted "He pushed away his family, his girlfriend, hi friend and whoever I left out of the speech, with this stupid plan of his. It's his fault, Emma. Besides, feeling sorry for your little brother won't solve our problem."

"That's not what I…"

"If you want to go, the door is open, I won't hold you back."

Emma wanted to speak, but she couldn't find the words. The whole thing felt like déjà vu. It didn't take a telepath to know that Lewis didn't mean it. Neither did Rick when he said the same words. Emma knew that deep inside everyone felt abandoned, betrayed and lost. They were a family; they needed each other, even though no one wanted to admit what was so obvious. The woman's eyes were filled with tears again.

"You know, Lewis, right now you're about to make the same mistake my brother did."

Lewis lowered his eyes to the ground in sudden shame.

Emma went on.

"You didn't mean to say that to me, did you?"

She got no answer but she could understand the younger man's thoughts and they made her smile. They smile was not as bright as her smiles used to be once but it was just as honest.

"Rick didn't mean it either. Please give him a second chance, you know he deserves it."

Lewis turned away from her, knowing she was right.

"Tell your brother I'll only forgive him if he apologizes for hurting the most of us and gives up on the dream and tries to think of more realistic options. Then I'll work with him again, but don't expect me to be best friends with him."

Emma stepped beside him and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek.

"I didn't expect any more than this. It's enough for now. Thank you. And by the way, I didn't want to leave at all."

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The current X-men

The training was nothing but two groups fighting against each other, of course without causing major injuries. They trained in a huge, empty room and these sessions usually lasted 2 hours every day.

However, today's training was shorter. After half an hour, Diana a.k.a. Lady Light suddenly stopped throwing her blinding-bright lightballs at Alex. Rick and the others noticed her hesitation.

Brian stepped closer to her and touched her left arm.

"Hey, Diana… Are you okay?"

"Yeah. But where is Susie to distract me with one of those water-creatures? And where's Lynn to suck the life out of me? Or Hannah to fool me with her illusions? God, I even miss Rebecca's attacks when she used all four elements and those stupid charged things on me. It's not like I like it when the ground moves away from under my feet or when I have to throw myself to whatever it is near me to avoid getting hurt, but I still miss everyone, yes, even Rebecca."

Alex laughed at her.

"You can't be serious, Diana. I mean, the rest of us are happy that we finally got rid of our favourite arrogant 'Miss Ah-was-born-in-Europe' along with her annoyingly fake accent and her sister, that kleptomaniac, unfaithful bitch. Not to mention our dear Charlotte who walks on the streets with a fake ID with 'Esther LaRochelle' written on it. Come on, that name sounds like a whore. By the way I wouldn't be surprised if she really was one. And if they weren't already egoistic enough, except for Violet they all think they are the most beautiful women on earth, goddesses of beauty and perfection. Why would we want them here? They left because they don't need such imperfect people around like we are. And Chris, that poor man went with them happily, thinking Rebecca will love him forever, when we all know they are incapable of loving and honesty. So, after all this, you say you miss them?"

If looks could kill, Alex would've had died three times at least.

Brian found it very hard not to hit his team mate, while the short Clark struggled to hold Mike back from knocking her out.

"How can you say that?" Audrey a.k.a. Snow Queen shouted "They're our friends, you… you… I can't even find the right word for that. How dare you hurt them? Do you think you're better?"

"Well at least I'm not a thief."

"You're right" Mike nodded "You're not a thief. You're a bitch."

"You're only saying this because you can't accept the truth."

"We could say the same to you, Alex" Clark added, grinning.

Rick was speechless. He didn't how much of that he could bear. His best friend was talking about her ex-girlfriend in a way he never thought he would allow her. He thought it would be good to hear these dirty lies about Adeline, but somehow it left terrible, because he knew it was not fair. It wasn't fair when she left him, either. Life wasn't fair.

"That's enough. Stop it!" he yelled at them.

They all stopped fighting, surprised by his sudden outburst.

Audrey walked up to Rick and glared him.

"You know, Alex may be a bitch but you are the reason our friends left. And not just the southern girls, I'm talking about everybody who used to be part of the team."

Clark nodded at her.

"Yes, it's a team now, practically falling apart. But that was our family not so long ago. Or have you already forgotten?"

"You'll get used to it" Alex hissed "And don't hurt him any more, okay? He's not at fault. Lewis and the French whores are."

Mike growled loudly.

"Let me kill her."

"No" Rick crying jumping between them.

By this time Brian looked very annoyed. He walked past his team mates and waved his hand to Rick, smirking at him.

"I guess your wonderful training session just ended."

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The Rebels

Emma picked her phone and called her brother. She was happy and scared at the same time, not knowing how he will react.

"Hello?"

"Rick, it's Emma."

Silence… She swallowed.

"Uh… I tried to reach you through our link but it seems neither of us are feeling so great now."

"I can't say I am. What do you want?"

"You know I… I had a talk with Lewis and… he said we might be going back. But there are some conditions."

She could hear something that sounded like a bitter laugh.

"Tell him not interested. We're doing fine."

"You're a bad liar, Rick."

"You always have to be right, don't you?"

"Look, I'm sorry. I understand that you are upset because she left."

"Who?"

"Don't play stupid."

Emma heard him sigh.

"You should concentrate on your own life. I'll deal with mine."

"So you don't want us to go back."

"Not as long as you're trying to tell me I was wrong."

"But you were."

Silence.

"Sorry, I shouldn't have said that" Emma spoke quickly "I didn't mean to hurt you, I just… I just want…"

"Stop apologizing. There's no deal" Rick said in a stern voice "I'll reach the peace our parents couldn't."

Emma chuckled bitterly at his statement.

"What's so fucking funny?"

"How are you going to make peace in the world if it's missing in your own family?"

Next thing Emma could hear was a crashing sound. She guessed her brother had thrown the phone away.

What should I do know?

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The Thieves

"Becca" came a soft whisper from somewhere near her, and Rebecca's eyes opened. She sat up on the bed with a smile on her face.

Chris greeted her with a kiss and gently pulled her body closer to his.

"Bon matin" she breathed into his ear.

"Afternoon, you mean."

She shrugged and let out a yawn, then got up and started to dress.

Chris had a loving look on his face as he watched her lift her perfect body from under the covers and dressed into pants and pullover with her back turned to him.

"Sleep well?" he asked as he watched her brush her long brown hair.

"Uh-huh. Why de hell did ya wake me?"

He couldn't help but laugh.

"I didn't want you to miss the dinner."

"Ah'm not sure Lynn would wanna see me now" she muttered, turning around "Y' know last nahght Ah…"

"I know. I heard Charlotte and Violet talk about it. Uh… actually fight about it."

Rebecca's mouth dropped open.

"What?"

"Yeah, well. Violet said you were right and we should really go back…"

"Ah don' wanna go back, Chris. Ah jus' feel dat somet'in's very wrong and maybe goin' back's de only way outta dis."

"But you didn't say anything when we came here."

"'Cause den Ah didn' know. Ah didn' know dat it will destroy mah sistah. Somet'in's wrong wit' her, Ah can feel it an' Ah bet Sophie can feel it, too. When it comes to hidin' feelings on purpose, Lynn's just as good as me an' y' know Ah'm a master at dis. If she won' talk t' me, Ah'm gonna need help, an' if dere's anyone Lynn would trust den it's Captain 'IknowwhatI'mdoing-Justfollowme'. Ah'm worried, Chris. Ah mean, she's mah sistah an'… never mind."

She sat down on the floor, pulling her knees to her chin with a lost expression. Once in her life, Rebecca LeBeau had no idea how she was going to help the people she loved. Her weak empathic ability was a curse sometimes.

Actually she was grateful she didn't have Sophie's powers. Sure, the girl was special, understanding other people's feelings easily. That wouldn't be a problem, but the people she could read weren't always living ones. And except for Sophie no one really knew how the dead feel, how their souls tend to search for their loved ones, how they seek revenge. It was tiring, terrifying and painful – as she used to tell her family. That was until she gained control of this strange talent. Since then, she's calmer and smiles more. However, Rebecca still didn't want to be in her place.

Chris kneeled beside her and took her hand in his.

"You and your sisters are the toughest girls I've ever met. Especially you and Lynn. Everything's going to be alright."

He put a hand on her cheek and she leaned into his touch.

"Yeah, in de end. But y' don' feel what Ah do, Chris. Ah'm scared t' step out de door, Ah have a feelin' dat somet'in' might happen while Ah'm not home. An' it's got somet'in' t' do wit' Linny."

He kissed her lightly on the forehead and smiled.

"You used to tell me not to worry so much."

Rebecca smirked and stood up.

"Guess y're right. Now, where's mah food?"

Chris shook his head sadly. Sometimes, the girl still was a mystery to him.

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Meanwhile, Rosie was cooking with Charlotte and they were talking to Violet.

Lynn went to find Sophie and tell her dinner was almost ready. She opened the door to their room and saw her youngest sister sitting on her bed, holding something in her palm.

Sophie looked up and gave Lynn a small smile.

"Dinner already?"

"Yeah. What y' lookin' at?"

Sophie lifted the thing in the air. It was a bracelet Lynn remembered. Their father bought it to their mother when she learned to control her powers. Rogue wore it all the time, always saying how much she loved the dragonfly shaped silver pendants with the small emeralds.

Adeline's eyes filled with unshed tears.

"Y' okay?" she asked Sophie.

The girl nodded.

"Ah was… t'inkin'" she explained, looking through the window "Rosie told me dey always seemed t' know what's rahght o' wrong."

Lynn chuckled softly.

"Non, dat's not true. Dey made deir mistakes as well as we do ours."

"But dey always helped de X-men when dey were needed."

"Well, as y' can see, we're not needed" the elder girl threw back, turning to leave.

Sophie remained silent. She knew her sister would come back. After two minutes, Adeline appeared in the doorway again with guilty-looking emerald-green eyes.

"Y' not comin', sis?"

The blonde smiled to herself but gave no response.

"Oh mah, Sophie, don' do dis. Y' know Ah didn' mean it."

No answer.

"Sophie Mirabelle Angéline LeBeau, Ah, the queen of the darkness command ya t' look at me."

"Y' sound lahke Rick imitatin' Lewis an' Kyra's momma" Sophie said letting out a soft giggle, then she frowned "Ah don' remember her."

Lynn walked closer and sat down on the bed.

"How could ya? Y' were jus' a li'l child."

A single tear rolled down the younger girl's face.

"Ah don' even remember mah own parents, Linny. Ah can't talk t' dem when deir spirits show up, Ah can only feel what dey feel. Ghosts don' hug ya, dey don' kiss ya, dey jus' feel, an' Ah don' even know if it's really dem or jus' mah imagination."

Lynn squeezed her sister's hand gently, not saying a word, waiting for her to continue.

"Ah haven' been lookin' f'r dem f'r a while now. Dey're slowly fadin' into not'ing lahke de oder spirits, takin' deir emotions wit' dem. In about half a year Ah won' sense dem at all. But how can y' miss someone y' don' know?"

Adeline exhaled slowly, letting go of Sophie's hand – which was several shades paler than her own.

"Ah don' t'ink Ah can help y' with dis. Let's not solve all our problems t'day. Some t'ings jus' need tahme."

"But how much?"

Lynn attempted to lighten the mood.

"Do Ah look lahke a fortune teller to y'?"

Although it wasn't her best line, it worked.

Soon they were sitting by the table eating, and though they hid it quite well, Sophie could easily sense Lynn being angry with Rebecca, and the other being worried. The blonde knew instantly something was wrong and she was too curious to leave it alone, so she waited patiently for her sisters to give a hint.

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That's it for a little while. I'm going to take some exams next month, so the update will be a little late. Until then, please let me know if you like it.

Thanks for reading!

Bye,

Lilly