AN:

Viviana is an OC who knows Italian, Spanish and French. At best she only knows a few words in English so for the duration of this story she'll be speaking in French unless otherwise noted (as the LeBeaus also know French). Of course, this has the unfortunate side-effect of transcribing whole conversations a little difficult, mostly because my French is limited to internet translators. Then too, you guys actually have to read it and I imagine it might get a little messy.

To this end, anything written in square brackets will be the English translation of something said in French:

["Like this."]

It was the least messy way I could think of to express that what's being said is in another language.

Also, there is a discussion about the various races of WoW in this chapter. For those unfamiliar with WoW or haven't read Queen of Identity Fraud recently, the playable races in WoW are divided into two factions: The Alliance and the Horde. Generally speaking, people who love playing Horde are rather disparaging of the Alliance (and Allys accuse the Horde of being 'ugly'). Personally, I like them both. These two factions can't communicate with each other in game, but they can kick each other's butts.

'Vent' is short for 'Ventrillo' which is a program often used by people who play WoW to communicate verbally with each other.

Philippe is also an OC.

Chapter 3

"Umm, Pietro," said Wanda as she looked through the front window of their van at the mansion before them. "Are we sure this is the place?"

"This is the address Remy gave me," Pietro replied.

"I'll call!" John offered helpfully, already dialling on his phone. "Pick up... pick up... Hi Randy Roguey! ... No, I'm not going to stop calling you that. Hey do you live in a big place with a big fancy gate and a fence that's just begging ne'er-do-well's to graffiti it? ... All right, thanks mate."

Wanda and Pietro started as the gates began to open.

"I'm guessing this is the place then," said Wanda.

"Forward march!" John declared. "Onward to greater glory!"

Not long thereafter, their van pulled up outside the front door and Rogue and Gambit came out to greet them.

"Hey," Rogue said. "We were beginning to think you'd gotten lost or something."

"We thought we had," said Wanda. "This place is huge. Oh, but it's good to see you, Anna."

"Good to see you too," Rogue replied, giving her a hug. "I'm glad you could make it. And if you think this place is big, you should see the -"

"Ahem," Gambit cut in before she could say 'Guild Hall' and give them all ideas. "Dinner's all ready. I... Did you guys bring your computers?"

"Of course," Dominic said as he helped John and Pietro unload. "You didn't expect us to go without playing WoW for a whole week, did you?"

"Hmm, good point."

"WoW party!" John yelled.

"Well, that sure explains why you drove all this way instead of flying," Rogue said, bemused. "By the way, Jubilee and Pete will be coming down tomorrow."

"Good stuff," said John. "It feels like months since we last saw them... oh wait. Any other X-men coming?"

"Just Storm and Logan on the day of the wedding," Rogue replied.

"Bobby and Kitty declined? Or you didn't invite them in the first place?"

"Didn't invite them in the first place. C'mon, let's get inside."

Evidentially everyone thought this was a good plan, because their four guests and their things were soon inside. They were shown to their rooms and they sat down for dinner.

"And tomorrow," Rogue said as she cut up her steak, "after Jubes and Pete get here, you me, Jubes and Zoe are going to go for the bridesmaid dresses."

"Goody," Wanda said. "So, what am I wearing, do you know yet?"

"Champagne, I'm told," Rogue replied.

"Hmm, Wanda wearing nothing but an alcoholic beverage..." John said, waggling his eyebrows.

"I could have done without that visual!" Pietro objected as he reached for the pepper.

"Idiots," Wanda said. "Champagne, interesting."

"Okay," said Dominic, who had paused in the middle of taking a bite, "what colour is champagne?"

"It's like a dull sort of goldish colour," Rogue said.

"Why can't you just say 'gold' then? Why do people have to invent all these names for colours that all look the same anyway?"

"Because it's not gold, it's champagne."

"Ignore him," said Wanda as John discreetly moved his vegetables to her plate. "Dom thinks that mauve and violet are the same colour."

"They're both purple!" Dominic insisted.

"See?"

"I don't know how you put up with him," Rogue said with a wink.

Wanda chuckled.

"So, do Pete and Jubes play WoW at all?" asked John.

"I have no idea," Rogue said.

"We'll just have to edumacate them," John declared as Wanda moved his vegetables back onto his plate.

"Edumacate?" Rogue repeated, amused.

"I like to mangle words. So sue me."

"You're the writer."

"Speaking of WoW," said Gambit. "How about after dinner we set things up and raid something?"

"I like this plan," Pietro replied.

The following morning, Rogue waited at the airport for Jubilee and Pete to get off their plane. Just as she was beginning to wonder if she was at the right terminal, the pair came through the door. Jubilee immediately gave Rogue a huge hug and Pete grinned as he watched Rogue get the full serving of Jubilee's excitement.

"Did ya'll have a good flight?" Rogue asked as they headed outside.

"Da," said Pete.

"It was a flight," Jubilee replied with a shrug. "Blackbird's better."

"You get that," Rogue replied, smiling.

She led them to Gambit's pickup truck and they got inside; there was just enough room for the three of them to fit comfortably.

"Usually we ride motorcycles," Rogue explained.

"Heh," Jubilee said. "I suspect you're going to have to invest in a family car, Rogue."

"Probably."

"Eeeee, I can't believe you're having a baby! I want one."

"Gonna have to get yourself a man first, Jubes," Rogue teased her.

"I'm working on it," Jubilee replied with a grin.

"Oh, by the way, do either of you play WoW?"

"Play what?" asked Jubilee.

"No," Pete said.

"Well, I should warn you that you're going to be staying with John and his friends, Wanda, Pietro and Dominic, and they - as well as Remy and I - are all big fans of World of Warcraft," Rogue said. "It's likely they will attempt to corrupt you. It's too late for me; Remy got me addicted last year."

Jubilee giggled.

"It's hard to get into computer games when you have the danger room," said Pete.

"Yeah, I can see why that might be," Rogue replied.

They chatted all the way. Once they arrived, Jubilee and Pete were just as impressed as Wanda and the boys had been at Gambit's place, despite living in a mansion themselves; it was more that they didn't expect a couple of thieves to live in a place quite that impressive. Once inside, Rogue introduced everyone.

"Right, so," said Wanda, rubbing her hands together, "bridesmaids gowns now?"

"Yep," Rogue replied with a grin. "Oh, unless you wanted to see your room first, Jubes?"

"Let's see... bedroom or bridesmaid gown," Jubilee said. "Gee, that's a hard question."

Wanda laughed.

"Okay, well, let's get going then," Rogue said. "See you round, boys."

Gambit walked down the main hallway in the Guild Hall and entered the foyer just in time to see a familiar face and her collection of bags.

["Darling!"] the black-haired woman exclaimed.

Before Gambit had a chance to react, the short, full-figured woman in her high-heeled shoes had wrapped her arms around him and pressed her lips against his in a brief, if forceful, kiss.

["I have missed you,"] she informed him and then promptly slapped him across the face. ["And don't pretend you didn't deserve that."]

["Why not, darling?"] Gambit inquired with a tilt of his head. ["Were you planning on hitting me again if I did?"]

["Naughty boy. And yes."]

["Now, now, Vivi, I'm an engaged man."]

["Engaged, but not yet married. There's still time. And don't call me 'Vivi'."]

["Now who's being naughty?"]

["Well, that goes without saying,"] Viviana replied saucily. ["What are you getting married for anyway? I thought you were going to play the bachelor for the rest of your life."]

["Sometimes things don't always go to plan."]

["I hate it when that happens."]

["Sometimes it works out better."]

"Hmm," Viviana said, running a long fingernail down his chest. ["Not this time."]

["Maybe not for you,"] Gambit replied and then added slyly: ["Little one."]

Viviana slapped him again.

["Don't call me that either,"] she said.

Gambit just laughed at her.

While Wanda, John, Pietro and Dominic were engaged in their game of World of Warcraft, and Rogue and Gambit were busy with Guild and wedding preparations, Jubilee and Pete were at something of a loose end. To pass the time, they located the Billiards room and decided to play a game.

Jubilee picked up one of the cues from where they were stored against the wall and Pete opened up the nearby cupboard where he assumed the balls would be kept. He was correct and as he pulled out the box, his eyes fell on another box right beside them. He froze momentarily, but continued putting out the balls.

"What?" Jubilee asked, noting the embarrassed expression on his face.

"Oh, it's umm, nothing," Pete replied.

This was the worst thing to say to Jubilee, of course, and she immediately walked over to take a look herself.

"Condoms? Is that all?" Jubilee asked, paused and then frowned slightly. "Why would there be condoms in the Billiards room?"

Jubilee and Pete looked at each other, then at the pool table, then back at each other.

"Oh second thoughts," Jubilee said quickly, backing away carefully. "Maybe we should go see what this Warcraft game is like."

"Da, I think that's a very good idea," Pete agreed and quickly shoved the balls back into the cupboard.

"I can't believe you've talked me into this," Jubilee said as she looked at the character creation screen of World of Warcraft. "Rogue warned me this might happen."

"That she did," Pete said, looking at a similar screen on another computer.

Despite everything, the two X-men had been talked into creating trial accounts.

"Okay, what race?" Jubilee mused. "Aww! The Gnomes are cute."

"Boo! Alliance scum," John declared. "And the Gnomes are a joke."

"Oh but they're so little and - oooh! Pink hair!" Jubilee said as she flipped through the options.

"No, I forbid it," John said. "You have to pick a real race, not a rodent."

Jubilee stuck out her tongue and blew raspberries at him.

"That's right," said Wanda helpfully. "Friends don't let friends play Gnomes."

Pete chuckled.

"What are you looking at, Pete-o?" asked John. "And if you say 'Gnome' I may cry."

"Actually, I thought that the Draenei looked interesting," Pete replied.

"What is it with you two and Alliance?" John asked in exasperation. "Horde rules, Alliance drools."

"Oh let them play their little Alliance," Dominic said. "Once they've succeeded in corrupting their friends and the X-men have their own guild, we can have guild vs guild PvP wars."

"Oooh I like this plan!" John said. "I'm looking forward to frying Bobby's pansy arse already."

"Hey, this is just a trial," Jubilee pointed out. "There's no rule that says once we've played we'll automatically become addicted, thank you very much. Oooh the Night Elves are smexy."

"Hey, if you like elves so much," John said, taking the mouse, "Blood Elves. They're Horde, so that automatically makes them way cooler."

"But they look all pasty and yuck," Jubilee objected. "Dwarves are cute too. Not as cute as the little Gnomies -"

"Gnomies?" John said, turning up his face in disgust. "Gnomies? I can see that I was right in leaving the X-men, that's for sure."

"And the Blood Elves are not 'pasty and yuck'," Wanda said firmly. "Although I guess I can't really expect any kind of taste from someone who thinks gnomes are 'cute'."

"But they are!" Jubilee insisted.

"Or maybe I'll play a human," Pete considered aloud.

"Why?" asked Dominic. "We can be human any time."

"No we can't," Pietro replied. "We're mutants."

"Baseline human or mutated human," Pete said. "We're still human either way."

"I think you guys raise a good point," Wanda said. "They should introduce mutants."

"And they need to be Horde," John said.

"Why limit them to one race?" asked Pietro. "They should create mutated versions of all the races."

"They have," said Dominic. "They're called 'undead'."

"I object," said Wanda. "I don't look a thing like the Forsaken and my lower jaw is completely intact."

"What about the Lost Ones?" asked John. "They're kinda like Draenei mutants. Or is that the Broken?"

"The Broken are devolved Draenei, and the Lost Ones are devolved Broken," said Wanda.

"I think it's good that they don't bring in mutants per say," said Dominic. "Aside from balance issues, everyone in this game has some sort of power and the different races have different racial abilities. I think it's a little redundant."

"Could be right there," Wanda said.

"Aww, take all the fun out of it," said John.

"Okay, I think..." Jubilee said thoughtfully. "I'm going to make a Gnome mage."

"My Tauren is going to eat your Gnome for a midnight snack," Pietro said.

"Would you stop picking on the Gnomes?" Jubilee asked as the door opened.

"What's this about Gnomes?" Rogue inquired as she stepped inside.

"Jubes thinks the 'Gnomies' are 'cute' and has decided she's going to play one," John said in obvious disgust.

"I told you not to let them talk you into playing, Jubes," Rogue said. "Oh... Pete, not you too?"

"We were watching them play," said Pete. "It looked interesting."

"You're both doomed."

"Damn straight they are," said John. "They both like Alliance races. I feel dirty just being in the same room with them."

"I still say we let them corrupt the rest of the X-men, start their own guild on the Alliance side and crush them like the scum they are," said Dominic. "Erm, I mean, co-ordinate our guilds for PvP wars."

Rogue laughed.

The last few days leading up to the wedding went by very quickly, and before Rogue knew it, it was Friday night, and she was at her bachelorette party. Likewise, Gambit was across town with his friends, walking from the car park to the casino where they were holding his bachelor party.

"What, no strippers?" asked Gambit. "Worst bachelor party ever."

"But we have poker," Henri pointed out.

"Yeah but... it's like tradition or something."

"It's also a tradition for married men who go to bachelor parties to make up stories to their wives about how there were no strippers," Emil said. "We figured we'd just cut out the lying part this time."

"Yeah," said Theoren. "The truth'll throw them off and for once we'll have the upper hand."

"I've never played poker before," said John.

"You're friends with Remy and you've never played?" asked Etienne, pointing his thumb at Gambit.

"Usually we play WoW," said Dominic.

"Oh right," said Henri. "You're his World of Warcraft friends."

Gambit grinned.

"I tried that once," said Toby. "I got bored."

Gambit, John, Dominic and Pietro stared at the Australian Thief.

"Is that even possible?" wondered Pietro.

"You thought WoW was boring?" John asked. "I disown you as my countryman!"

Toby laughed at him.

"Okay," said Etienne. "I've never played. And I've just realised that might have been a bad thing to admit. So, who's for poker?"

"Moi," said Philippe.

"Onwards!" Etienne declared, pointed towards the casino and quickly led the way inside before he could be talked into trying out World of Warcraft sometime.

The next morning, Storm and Logan arrived at Gambit's place outside of New Orleans.

"Huh," she said. "It's certainly a lot smaller than I remember. But then, I suppose I was only twelve."

They were let inside. Rogue, Wanda, Jubilee and Zoe were getting their hair and make up done before changing into their gowns, and Pete, Pietro, Dominic and John were killing time on the computer.

"John," Storm said pleasantly. "It's been awhile."

"Yep," John replied, briefly glancing up from his screen. "Hope everyone's doing okay. Whoops, 'cuse me, got mobs to kill."

"This is actually a fun game," Pete told Storm. "I am thinking I might subscribe when we get back to the mansion."

"I see."

"Just make sure you don't start comparing battle situations to things that happen in the game, Tin Man," Logan said sternly, "or I'll work you in the danger room so hard you'll wish you'd never heard of the silly game."

"Who would do that?" Pete asked, looking confused.

"Me," said Pietro.

"I did," said Dominic.

"Hey you know that time we rescued you from the Sentinels? All the way through," John added gleefully. "I was rather fond of Wanda's joke about Silencing."

"Yeah, that was a good one," said Pietro.

"You were saying?" Logan asked Pete.

"Now I know," Pete replied.

Logan and Storm made themselves at home on the lounge. Storm leaned back in her seat and frowned as her eyes fell on something underneath the coffee table. Curiosity got the better of her and she reach in underneath to see what it was.

"Huh," she said and put it back again.

Logan stared at her like she'd grown a second head. "You find a box of condoms in the living room and all you can say is 'huh'?"

"That's nothing," John piped up. "We've been finding them everywhere. The kitchen, the dining room, the Billiards room -"

"Knew about that one," Logan muttered.

"All the bedrooms," John went on. "All the bathrooms. The garage. The pool house. The laundry -"

"You've actually been in the laundry?" Dominic asked.

"Sure," John said cheerfully. "After the first half a dozen boxes, it became like a scavenger hunt. It's in between the detergent and the fabric softener, in case you were wondering. The only place I haven't been able to check is that locked room Remy told us about. Now, I know he said we shouldn't try to get in there unless we want to become accomplices to about twenty years worth of crimes, but I think it's really their secret sex chamber."

"If it's the room I think you're talking about," said Logan, "I've become an accomplice to twenty years worth of crimes. Storm, you never should have let her leave Xaviers."

"Perhaps you never should have left Xaviers," Storm replied tolerantly.

"How are you unphased by this?"

"I have known Remy a very long time, Logan. Quite frankly I am more surprised Rogue even got pregnant. He must really love her to throw caution to the wind like that."

Back at the Guild Hall, Gambit was looking at his reflection in the mirror. Like his groomsmen, he was wearing a black suit, but his shirt was red rather than the shade of gold the girls insisted on calling "champagne".

"I never would have believed it," said Henri, slinging his arm across Gambit's shoulders. "You actually clean up nice, mon frère."

Instead of the snappy retort Henri was expecting, however, Gambit instead replied with: "Am I doing the right thing?"

"Cold feet, huh?" Henri asked, not bothering to hide his slight smile.

"I guess. I mean, I love Rogue, I just… I just don't know…"

There was silence for a moment.

"Well, that's normal," Henri said. "Plus everything did happen rather quickly."

"Yeah."

"Why'd you propose?"

Gambit cracked a smile. "'Cause I thought it was the right thing."

"Has that changed in the past three weeks?"

Gambit shrugged and shook his head helplessly. Henri patted him on the shoulder.

"Look, Remy, this isn't... there's no tactful way of saying this," Henri said seriously. "The fact of the matter is that today you're going to make a decision: You're either going to marry Rogue or you're not going to marry Rogue, and both decisions have their own, unique set of consequences."

"I know."

"I can't tell you what marriage to Rogue'll be like. I can tell you that for all the fights Mercy and I have had, I wouldn't stop being married to her for all the world. I love her and I love my boys and I wouldn't change a thing."

Gambit smiled.

"I can also tell you what will happen if you don't go through with it," Henri went on. "Tante Mattie will be pissed, for one thing. Now if that doesn't scare you, I don't know what will."

Gambit managed a low chuckle.

"Père will be angry, and I don't even want to think how Rogue'll react to being left at the alter," Henri said. "Especially as she's pregnant, so you have the hormones to deal with. And it's your child she's carrying, Remy. Marriage or not, you won't be able to escape that responsibility."

Gambit nodded. "I know, I just... I know."

"Like I said, cold feet is normal," Henri said. "And quite frankly, I kind of expected you to freak out sooner or later. You've been acting the playboy half your life."

"It's fun being a playboy though."

"I think that's the whole point. But there's nothing wrong with moving on, getting married, having kids. Sure it's hard work, but it can be just as fun, just in different ways."

"How would you know that?" Gambit asked, nudging Henri in the ribs. "You've never been a playboy at all."

"That's 'cause I got lucky and met the woman of my dreams early. And Rogue? I'm pretty sure she's the woman of your dreams, Remy," Henri said seriously. "I've seen the way you look at her. Look, it's your decision, one way or another, and I can't make it for you, but in my opinion, I think you're crazy if you don't."