La Bal de Noce (Cajun Wedding Dance)

by Chihorrorfan84

Running is no longer an option! Gambit's past finally catches up to him. He braces himself to finally face what he had been running from for years and he fears what the team, especially Rogue, will think once they get a glimpse of his old life.

8. Chapter 8: Gambit's Wedding Night

I Chapter 8

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~*~Warning!~*~ ~*~Warning!~*~ ~*~Warning!~*~ ~*~Warning!~*~ ~*~Warning!~*~ ~*~Warning!~*~ ~*~Warning!~*~ ~*~Warning!~*~

This one got really dark...and gory, I even questioned posting it, but this is FanFiction and you have been warned!

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Gambit's Wedding Night

(Years Ago; Louisiana, Assassin Maison...)

(~*~Translated from French~*~)

In the courtyard of the Assassin's home, the Thieves Guild gathered together in their entirety. They obediently and quietly stood together in a large semi-circled filling the large stone courtyard to watch the Blood Trial take place. One of their highest members, John-Luc LeBeau, the leader of the Thieves Guild, had been accused of misrepresenting his youngest son, Remy LeBeau, as a normal young man. Marius Boudreaux, the leader of the Assassins Guild, demanded satisfaction for his family, and the bride, Marius' only daughter, Bella Donna Boudreaux. It was beyond risky to consent to a marriage between their children; he was taking an unbelievable leap of faith to allow the union, but the possible outcome was far too worthwhile to not attempt. The outcome would have been peace for the two families for the first time in hundreds and hundreds of years. Unfortunately, no sooner had the wedding concluded, when the groom was revealed as a monster, an unnatural thing, that was now married to Marius' beloved daughter. His daughter, unbeknownst to Marius, knew full well that Remy was a mutant. She had known for years now, ever since he had made that one frantic phone call to her in the middle of the night. They had agreed to meet in their secret spot, and he revealed to her that he had the incredible ability to hold on to something make it glow and then make it explode. His fantastic ability was as unbelievable as the union of an Assassin-daughter to a Thief-son. It was revealed during the wedding ceremony that the boy was a mutant, and he was outed in the most dramatic of scenes. The mutant-Thief was outed by the eldest Boudreaux son, Julien Boudreaux. Unfortunately, Julien, was known by both families as a sociopath, he was an insanely violent young man, with no ability to empathize. It had been rumored for a long time that the Julien was not born "correctly". It was perceived from an early age that Julien enjoyed killing, he enjoyed it as much as a man would enjoy any forbidden vice. Marius was heartbroken, he could handle it if his son were an alcoholic or even a drug addict, but he did not how to cure his son's desire for blood and sadistic torment. His own father and the rest of Guild feared him, and they dreaded the idea of, one day, being lead by him. If Julien were to take control the Guild, the Assassins would no doubt take on the same violent and psychotic turn Julien was known for. Needless to say that the Assassins were conflicted, they naturally wanted their enemies to fall, but if Julien won he would, no doubt, murder his father and take his place as leader of the Assassins Guild. Julien was a master of his craft and surely no one would be able to prove he was the one that would ever commit such an outrageous act. Julien's bodies were never found, unless he wanted them to be.

The Blood Trial would began at sunset, and the crowded courtyard of men eyed each other from their respected sides. The entire Assassin Guild watched the Thieves Guild across from them nervously. They all anxiously awaited for the sunlight to dim as Julien prepared himself upstairs for tonight's challenge. Traditionally, it should have been Marius to fight for his daughter's honor, but he left the challenge to Juilen. Marius had allowed his son to take the challenge; it was in hopes that his son's savage anger could be spent on the useless LeBeau-boy, instead of himself. Marius feared for the lives of his daughter and his own, his heart pounded terribly at his options: if Juilen won, it would not be very long until his son's murderous nature would be turned on himself or perhaps Belle. If Juilen lost, the marriage would stand and Marius would suffer the consequences from his Guild for allowing a mutant to marry his only daughter. He was a father divided, he dreaded the day that his son's unstoppable violent nature would threaten his home. All he could do while Julien was growing up, was protect Belle from the horrors of her brother, and he had successfully done so. However, Juilen's sickness was far beyond a father's abilities to mend, but what could he have done? The idea of bringing his Assassin prince to a psychiatric hospital was unthinkable. The heir to a ancient criminal syndicate, receiving "meds" and speaking endlessly to a therapist? It was as ridiculous as it was impossible, so, Marius would suffer through his only option: he would attempt to channel his son's sickness to benefit the Guild. Perhaps it was a dangerous and short-sighted plan, but Marius saw no other option. Marius would occasionally, and anxiously look up to the window of his study. There, he knew his son was preparing for tonight's challenge and he prayed one way, or another, he, his daughter, and the Assassins would thrive.

Upstairs, inside the Assassin's sprawling Civil War-era plantation home, the sweet strings of Vivaldi's Four Seasons: Winter, could be heard. The sweet music could be followed to the study. The study was a beautiful old room inspired by both, the strongwood of a budding new America and the French-inspired ornate detail of the Parisian upper class. Here, Julien sharpened a long ancient blade to a surgical-sharpness, he allowed the beautiful music to surround him, his heavy black boots would sink softly down into the plush deep-crimson carpet that always made him think of pooling blood. He held the heavy, mirror-reflective blade up, closely to his face to inspect it; he grinned at the thought of how easily it would pierce the LeBeau son's heart. Blood Trials were not mandatory death challenges, however they would often end in death. Not that he would. Stabbing the mutant-boy's heart would end his life quickly, and that would be an incredible waste. He had every intention of wounding him enough to win, but he had all the intensions of keeping the boy alive. And he would enjoy the spoils of his victory immensely. Julien would close his eyes and envision, in great detail, how he would then celebrate his victory:

He would claim the wounded mutant-Thief for himself, as if he were some prized hunted animal. Julien demanded ownership over his prey, as any hunter would. He could not imagine anyone stopping him, as he brought the unconscious boy to their wine-cellar. It was a small concrete room with the thick walls, that were ideal for suspending the boy by the wrists with rope. Julien took advantage of a square wooden hatch-door built into the center of the concrete cellar floor, and tied the boy's ankles to it's corners to force his legs sightly apart. The inside of his mouth would be packed with fine, white Egyptian cotton; he would not want to hear the boys screaming just yet. The blood from the fight had only begin to drip from the boys cuts and open bruises. He would make a beautiful sight: a slender, tan physique, strip down to only a thin pair of shorts, he was a bit pubescent for Julien's taste, but the way the blood would streak his flesh would be poetry. The corners of his mouth could not help but curl into an unsettling grin at the thought of kneeling down and pressing his face to the suspended boy's bare stomach. He would rub his cheek against him, and savor the skin of his cheek against the boy's abdomen. He would do this until the boy woke, and realized where he was, now is when he began to panic. How Julien would enjoy the frantic raise and fall of the mutant-boy's belly against his face! He could hear it now: the hyperventilation giving way to frightened-frustrated tears, and muffled wailing from behind the Egyptian cotton. Juilen would stand and watch him twist and fight against his ropes; he would work himself into a panicked frenzy, until his smooth elegant body formed clear-crystaline beads of sweat. As he always did, Julien forced himself to take his time, otherwise he would climax too soon. The moments would feel like hours before Julien would impatiently start tearing off his own clothing, until he was nude from the waist up; his erection growing. He would step behind the boy, pressing his chest against his bare wet back. Of course, the boy would twist and writhe, possibly terrified at the thought of some impending rape, but that was far too common of a vulgarity to interest Julien; he required something far more unique. Julien would firmly press himself against the warm boy, gliding his hand cross his tight chest and clenching stomach. The boy would, naturally, fight all the more wildly as he began to realize Julien's prominent erection pressing into the small of his back. By this point, Julien could not restrain his aroused gasping, and breathing heavily in anticipation, he would eagerly, but steadily, select the scalpel he would use to penetrate the mutant, he would begin to cut just underneath his rib cage . The scalpel was so thin, and so sharp that the mutant would only realize he was being cut open when he saw Julien holding the handle of a surgical blade, this is where the boy would faint; this is where they would always faint. Carefully, Julien would begin to cut deep, and then deeper still. He would masterfully avoid any major arteries, he would artfully slice the boy in a way that a world-class surgeon would. He would then, quickly, lovingly, cut away his internal oblique and transverse muscles, until he cautiously opened his abdominal cavity to expose the satiny-slick internal organs inside. He would have to be fast; death could come at any moment in the hands of a less experienced sadist. He would then pull taught the skin of his belly to the sides of his waist. How unnatural was it, Julien wondered, to feel the skin of your stomach against your hips? Julien had always wanted to ask, but he doubted he would ever have an answer. Swiftly, he would wrap the boy's waist in clear-plastic to keep the boy alive and prevent the viscera from spilling to the cellar floor. Again, Julien would drop to his knees and press his face to the boy's exposed abdomen; feeling this new warmer, softer-wet texture, only a thin layer of plastic between his shaven face and the mutant-boy's small intestine and transverse colon; his erection throbbed. From this point, the boy would periodically wake; lulling between unconsciousness and agonizingly entranced-awareness. It would be just the beginning; over the course of hour, maybe more, Julien would removed the cloth from the boy's mouth and he would listen to the most marvelous guttural and pathetic of sounds abrupt from the dying boy's throat. Julien would use all of his depraved skill to keep the boy in a state of un-death. And all the while, as the boy slowly died, Julien would experience undeniable peace among the degradation; the tranquility in his eyes created tears of relief, as he felt the life in hands fighting for survival. And in between satiating his thirst for fine wine, he would continue to cut away at him. Until he was prepared for the second phase of his ritual; he would use a bone-saw to cut the sternum in two perfect halves next. He would never cut the sternum deeply enough so that it would cut all the way through, he would always leave the thinnest bridge behind, so the rib cage stayed together, just enough to withstand the force of his boning hooks. Using his impressive strength, he would press the two hooks with handles into both sides of the cut sternum, the boy would make the most fantastic groan as the metal hooks entered his chest. His misery made a music that nearly caused Julien to climax, but he made himself wait. He had to make sure the his boning hooks were securely digging into each respective side of the Thief's rib cage; he would then tightly grip the two handles and, grotesquely, he would wretch the boy's rib-cage apart in two symmetrical halves. The tearing of ligaments, snapping of the ribs and peeling away of membrane, sounded as sweet as Vivaldi's strings. This is where the boy would quickly die, they would all usually die before this, but he imagined the boy would impress him, being so young and strong. He would revel in seeing the boy's onyx-black spheres roll back into his head. Poetry, pure beauty as he pulled the boy's ribs open to expose his thoracic cavity. The strong young heart would pulsate weakly as it became exposed to the open air; Julien, whom had been erect for the duration of the boy's torment, would place his hands into the exposed cavity, and gently grope his heart to feel its last feeble pulsations, each soft, slowing tremor would push Julien's limits of depraved lust and the boy was so beautiful, that he would no longer hold back his forceful ejaculation." Yes! My God! Yes!" Julien would groan and with one hand he would grab the back of the boy's head and with a fist-full of the dead boy's hair, he would press the boy's lifeless face into his muscular shoulder and with the other hand he would grip the, now still, heart. After his climax, he would slowly release the limp body, his own chest sticky with blood and edema. In this moment, he would know peace like no other, he let the serenity wash over him and thoughtfully he grinned to himself; he would even playfully finger the slick rippled surface of the dead mutant's exposed trachea. He would then remove the rest of his soiled clothing and he would complete the rest of his ritual joyfully, nude, and happy. He would cut long lenghts of the strongest cat-gut violin cord and string up the corners of his swinging rib-cage to give the appearance of front wings, a "blood eagle" as it was called. And as a sickening finale, an act he would only reserve for Thieves: he would slice down the boy's back, as a butcher would cut a piece of meat, he would start at the hanging corpse's nape and down the boy's back, he would cut deeply into his trapezius muscle, using his spine as guide, he would precisely cut-away the skin and muscle from his spine and rip away the flesh from his posterior ribs; he would pull back the long, expertly cut, strips of flesh. Again, with the strong cat-gut and long needle, he would thread several points of each fleshy strip; pulling the wet-rubbery strips taught, and he would fasten each one to the sides of the small room, he would make the most-elegant of dripping wings. The mutant-boy would be a master piece, so beautiful in its perfection, that he would paint the mutilated angel in expensive oil paint. That way, he would have a vision of his crippled play-thing forever. His perfectly horrific fantasy would be abruptly interrupted by the sound of his sister entering the room.

~*~"You cannot do this! Julien please! If you love me, brother, you won't fight him! Please!"~*~ Belle was screaming in panicked hysteria. Still in her wedding dress, she ran directly from the church to her home. She followed the classical music her brother loved, to her father's study and threw open the wooden doors. She denied much of what her brother was, but deep down she was not so ignorant to think that Julien was incapable of violence. However, she allowed herself to remain blind to her brother's evils because, quite frankly, she loved him and he rarely became upset around her, she never saw what he was truly capable of. This was mostly due to the diligent interference of her father. Under their father's watchful eye, Julien was only kind, even sweet with her. At times he was distant and he would go missing, and any time he would become upset he would walk away from her. Of all the people in Julien's life, Belle was the one person Julien had made immaculate, and he demanded she remained so.

~*~" Sister, you look lovely."~*~ Julien said in a distracted way, his eyes barely deviated from the blade he was sharpening.

~*~" Julien, Remy is a good person! A Thief, yes, but a good enough man that he would agree to join our families for peace! He loves me!"~*~ Belle lamented. This was all her doing, and if Remy died because of her, she would kill herself out of guilt. And if Remy killed her only brother then she did not know if she could ever look at Remy the same way again; despite what others whispered about her brother, she loved him. The only possible chance of her sanity surviving was if she could stop this from happening. She would certainly go mad if she lost her brother and she would die if she lost her best friend, and now, husband.

~*~"After you seen what he was Donna? You cannot marry this monster."~*~ Julien replied calmly. He tested his blade on a piece of hair, the hair split in two the moment it was met with the incredible sharpness of the blade. Belle's eyes widened in terror as she watched the deadly blade demonstrate how easily it would cut.

~*~" I am already married, and he's not a monster!"~*~ Belle said holding up her wedding ring. She had made a horrible mistake. She should have known that her brother had been following her that one night when Remy's powers emerged. She should have told Remy that she would see him in the morning, when she knew where Julien was. It was stupid to meet at night, when she knew Julien was haunting the house, but Remy sounded so distraught she couldn't help but agree to meet him. She should have known Julien would follow her, and now, because of her carelessness, her one mistake in an otherwise perfectly hidden relationship, Remy was in danger.

~*~" He is dangerous, and must be handled before he can damage you or the family."~*~ Julien, now looking at his sister's doll-like face, stood and turned to leave. He had never mentioned the incident where Belle had left in the middle of the night to meet the mutant-Thief, perhaps if he had spoken up sooner they would not in this this situation. He did not regret it, however, because he never really looked at the boy until today; he was a beautiful specimen. He wanted the LeBeau-son, he wanted him like no other prey before; the desire was painful. He also enjoyed saving his precious sister before the boy could spoil her.

~*~" Please, brother, he's my best friend! And I know it was wrong, but he would never hurt me!"~*~ Belle begged, dropping to her knees, she gripped his legs to stop him from leaving and continued her desperate plea. ~*~" We did it for peace! For you too, we have lost so many! I love you and cannot bare you dead, I would not survive if I lost either of you! PLEASE!"~*~ Belle's eyes began to stream tears. Julien's face remained serious and unmoved as he pulled his sister off her knees. The intense stare that disturbed Belle, began to drape over her brothers eyes. Normally whenever her brother looked like this he would walk off, and he would then return later as the brother she recognized, but this time he continued to stare into her eyes as he spoke.

~*~" No boy deserves you, and certainly no monster, and no Thief. The LeBeau-son is all of these things. I see how you tried for peace, and it was naive. You need me to protect you, only me-"~*~ Julien's eyes took on a almost a crazed-dead eyed stare. He gripped his sister's shoulders tightly. Fright began to seep into Belle's heart, she had seen insanity in his eyes before, and she knew when Julien was this way, he was beyond any reason.

~*~"No-!~*~ Belle said desperately.

~*~" To save you! Father will not! He has fail you! He would just as quickly serve you up to a monster! And not just you sister, but all of us! I will keep you close and protect you!~*~ Julien's eyes remained crazed, and his voice gave way to passionate anger. He began to grip her shoulders so tightly that he pulled her off her feet, still in her pure white wedding gown, she could barely touch the tips of her toes to the plush crimson carpet beneath her feet.

~*~" NO! Julien please-!~*~ Belle's useless cry was interrupted by Julien's passionate kiss. Belle struggled helplessly under his strength, she tried to scream through this insanity. She continued to cry, now for an entirely different reason: her brother was sick, so terribly ill and she had realized it far too late to help him. Any denial that she used to ignore her brother's mental illness was now being shattered, as she was forced to participate in his deranged and frightening act of bizarre-affection. He continued to kiss her deeply, removing all trace of the Thief-monster's kiss and leaving only his own. He felt justified, this was always his purpose. Julien was a classic narcissist and in his mind he knew he was the only man that could look after her and the Assassins Guild . When he was satisfied, he slowly pulled away; still with the same transfixed and determined stare. Belle's head fell forward in shame.

~*~" I will not fail the Assassins or you, like father did. This is a problem best handled by me. You will be happy, my sister."~*~ Julien said. He released Belle and she immediately dropped to her knees, traumatized and totally bewildered. She sank to the floor and sobbed against the expensive rug. This had turned out all wrong, this was the opposite of what she wanted. She wanted to be married in order to save the families, to save lives, and now it could potentially cost her two people she loved most in this world. Remy was right, she should have never attempted such a risk; how could she be so blind? Julien took his blade and locked the door of the study behind him, locking his sister inside for her own good.

He made his was down to the courtyard, where on one side was the Thieves Guild were waiting and uncharacteristically, they were quiet and patient. On the other side, was his entire family; the Assassins quietly chattered among each other as they watched Julien's eyes fall on Marius; the hatred was obvious. Julien hated the Thieves Guild as much as any of the Assassins, but now he considered his father a traitor for allowing the marriage. He was outraged that his father would even consider giving consented to marrying off their Belle without discussing it with him was bad enough, but to sacrifice her to a mutant-Thief was unforgivable. It made no matter that the marriage was an attempt to join the families in peace. Julien felt betrayed, his father had sent him out to New Orleans as a type of distraction while they planned and held the wedding. Marius would allow his son to indulge in his brutal and sadistic hobbies while the marriage took place, and by the time Julien would have gotten back everything would already be set in motion. The two families would be joint and Julien would not be able to stop it once both families overruled him. However, no such luck. Little did Marius know, that John-Luc had paid a young man to go to New Orleans and track down Julien. The young man found him easy enough, and told him of the wedding. Julien would then not only kill the messenger, he eviscerated him, he then quickly set off back to his family church. However, he was too late to stop the wedding; it had just concluded before he rushed into the church to save his sister from this travesty. Once Julien outed the mutant boy to both families, Marius became enraged. Marius accepting a Thief-son as a son-in-law was a bitter pill to swallow, but upon revealing the boy was also a mutant, that was a real sin, a sin worthy of a challenge-able offense. He demanded satisfaction and immediate annulment of the marriage. However, the only way out of this traditional-Guild marriage would have been to challenge the Thieves in the proper traditional way: In the presence of both families, a member of each Guild was to fight each other until one was unable to stand, death was not uncommon and even preferred. The only weapons that were to be present, had to be held by the two challengers and could only be a type of blade. Julien would take the challenge before another word could be said, and Jean-Luc had taken the liberty to agree for his son that he would face off against Julien.

~*~" F-father I cannot do this! He's going to kill me!"~*~ Remy trembled all over, as he clutched his three-hundred year old weapon, and he watched, in terror, as Julien came down the stairs with his 60 pound razor-sharp saber. Remy's sword was a strong standard steel blade with a simple handle; it looked like a toy compared to Julien's steel and iron blade, that could just as easily crush him, as it could split him in half. He worked intensely to keep the bourbon his father had given him earlier, from raising to his throat. Remy had been terrified of Julien from the time he was very young; he would have done anything to avoid this fight. Julien was bigger and older than he was, needless to say he was stronger and his only advantage would have been his mutant abilities, however, he was not allowed to use his new powers. If he did, the Assassins would kill him, his father, as well as the rest of his family. If he was noticed in violating the rules it would certainly be the end for him, but he needed to use his powers if he wanted to survive; but thankfully his father had taken care of that too.

~*~"Remy, you listen here! You do as I say, and you will be fine. You trust me, no?"~*~ Jean-Luc said firmly. He was aware that the Boudreaux-son was carrying a weapon that was more then half the weight of his boy, but everything was going according to plan. From the moment Jean-Luc was approached by a Guild envoy about the wedding proposition, he had seen the opportunity. This was too good of a chance to pass up for Jean-Luc: The Assassins, in their entirety, were all gathered in one place and no weapons to speak of. And once he realize the power of his son's mutation, that sealed the deal. The laws were very clear for any formal challenge: absolutely no weapons were to be held by anyone, except the two challengers. After agreeing to the marriage, he knew it was a perfect chance to out his son's mutation for the sake of using Marius' manic son to incite a challenge. Every single Assassin member following the no-weapon rule, offered the perfect opportunity to take the Assassins by force. By following all laws and rules in their entirety, from the wedding acceptance to now, the Boudreaux's believed that both families had the same goal; and by Jean-Luc putting up his beloved son's life, they had no reason to believe that the Thieves were anything but law-biding. After all, the Thieves Guild had just as much to lose as they did. And though the Thieves were seen as the more untrustworthy of the Guilds, something like not mentioning that the LeBeau-son was a mutant, was thought to be the worst they were capable of. Thieves and Assassins were both relatively consistent in following the laws and would participate in the same 'acceptable' violence and killing that had always went on. This was the first formal challenge in nearly one-hundred years and both families had behaved accordingly; strangely the Thieves were exceptionally well-behaved.

~*~" ...Yes, I-I do but-"~*~ Remy did not notice his well-mannered family members, as he continued to wring the handle of his poison-dipped sword.

~*~" Do not think about it, what did I say? Tell me."~*~ Time was counting down and Jean-Luc needed to prepare his son quickly. The fight would commence at sunset and it was nearly time. Remy felt like a small child again, his father asking him to repeat what he had told him was something he had done ever since Jean-Luc began to teach his boy the ways of the world.

~*~" He-he...he will come at me once...to scare me and then he will let me think I have the upper hand..."~*~ Remy struggled, he thought of Belle briefly through his fear. Where was she? And if he lost the challege would Julien kill her? It was a horrifying thought, but it was quickly overwhelmed by the severity of his own situation. He didn't know if he could prevent himself from using his powers, every fiber of his being wanted to grab anything he could get his hands on and blow it apart with enough force to send Julien back to whatever nightmare he came out of.

~*~"And?"~*~ Jean-Luc gripped his son's shoulder, and how he wished he could hug him, but during a formal challenge it would be improper, and a sign of weakness. He knew his son had what it took to bring down the real monster. He just needed to push down his fear and trust him, Jean-Luc had this all in the palm of his hand. The poison on Remy's blade was incredibly potent, as long as Remy charged his blade within moments of slicing his opponent, the slightest cut would kill a man Juilen's size in seconds.

~*~"That is when I cut him.~*~ Remy said, trying his best to sound confident. Fear would disable him, Remy needed to find something in him that would take down Julien, even if it wasn't a kinetic blast. His father seemed so sure of himself, he needed to figure out something. Remy could fight a bit and he did seem to be getting better, ever since his powers emerged, he seemed to be getting faster and more agile. There were days he felt like he could put the best parkour and free runners to shame, but he was always afraid to try, he couldn't be so cocky to think that he could be as athletic, he remained fearfully cautious. As Remy grew and developed, so where his powers; as his body matured and changed, so did his mutation. And now, the heightened stress of the situation was causing his powers to have some unforeseen "growing pains". It was the most intense and strangest of feelings, in a moment that was already intense, he felt like a dam ready to burs. Under all of the tension he held within him, he felt ready to break open in a fantastic title wave of pressure and force. He didn't dare allow himself to become weak to the feeling. And since he knew that his hands could charge and blow things apart, he wouldn't allow himself to falter, he had no idea what this new feeling was or what his body was capable of.

~*~" It will be your only chance! Make it good!"~*~ Jean-Luc demanded in his son's ear, several members that stood next to Jean-Luc, shared varying degrees of looks. Some were warning Remy to not screw this up, and others were motivating and wished him luck. The only thing Remy needed to do was cut Juilen and stay alive.

~*~"What if he misses, Jean-Luc?"~*~ A Thief member asked. He appreciated the faith Jean-Luc had in his son, but this was serious. They had great plans for tonight and they could not be dismantled by the boy not doing his part. He chose to speak up because the boys trembling hands were causing some of the members to lose faith.

~*~" Shut up, you damn fool! ~*~ Jean-Luc sneered, he would not even entertain the idea of failure. ~*~You'll be fine, just remember what I told you.~*~ Jean-Luc assured his son. He then forced him to grasp the handle of his sword as hard as he could. He had shown his son how to use it, and today they would see how well he had learned. Remy had the beginnings of incredible fencer, and now would be the time to test his metal. It would be his only other option, because in order to effectively grasp something and change its kinetic energy into explosive energy, it would take a visible lit charge for all to see. His father had advised him to only charge the blade enough to make it warm, it would effectively activate the deadly poison. Jean-Luc demanded that Remy not allow the glow of his kinetic charge to show, if it did, he would surely be rushed and the Thieves would be done. To expect such control from a new mutant, whom was getting used to his brand new powers, was unrealistic but Jean-Luc did not realize this. Remy had no other option then to fight this one-sided battle, or he would surely die. Remy thought of Belle again, what would happen to her if he did die? There would be no one to look after her, no one that had her real best interests in mind. Perhaps her father, but if Julien survived he would definitely kill Marius for consenting to the marriage and attempting to hide the wedding from him.

~*~"R-right."~*~ Remy said. He wanted to tell his father about the, almost hot, pressurizing force threatening every fiber of his body, but he knew his father would just say it was fear and he should rid himself of it. And fear was an easy thing to come by with Juilen looking him over like a venomous copperhead. Remy was becoming distracted with fear as Julien locked eyes with him, it almost felt like he had the ability to stop his heart when Julien stared at him that way. And just as unnerving, he could make his blood run cold with fear when Julien began to smile! He had never seen him smile before, and such a smile, excited and hungry, not a glimmer of worry or fear, it was almost a twisted sort of lust. It commanded Remy to break into a sweat. Jean-Luc grab his boy's arm and forced him to stop looking an the Boudreaux-son, whom was putting no effort into scaring the boy pale.

~*~"Right nothing! What are you missing?!"~*~ Jean-Luc grabbed his son's arm tightly and forced him to look him the the eye. ~*~"You charge the blade before you cut! Don't let it glow! Or else you are done! Understand me?!"~*~ Jean-Luc whispered seriously, he wanted to shake him violently, but it would be unappropriated to do so. ~*~" Answer me dammit!"~*~ Jean-Luc had knowingly sent the young messenger that alerted Julien to his death, but they would lose no else.

"Ah-Ah will. Ah will...Before Ah cut..." Remy said, that strange feeling came over him, and again, it was that raging intensity that he forced himself to dam-up within his body, but now it was transforming into a sort of electric tingle. He felt it most often in his hands when he attempted to 'charge' something, this strange intensity was the same feeling he would get just before he would explode something. It started in his neck and then it cloaked over his chest, at first he thought he wasn't well, but it didn't feel like sickness or even weakness. This sensation was something different entirely. It seemed as though it were something to add to his fear and anxiety, but for some reason it came as a sort of power, almost reassurance.

~*~" Damn right you will! I am not losing you to that mental patient! Are you hearing me, son?!"~*~ This strange look on his son was scaring Jean-Luc. Though he could not appear concerned for his son, and he could not acknowledge the odd expression on Remy's face, he could not hide the fear in his voice.

~*~" Yes, Father...yes."~*~ This was the first time Remy had ever heard his father scared. Remy had always thought if he had ever seen his father scared, that it would terrify him. In fact, it had the opposite effect. The uncertainty and fear that he heard in his father's voice seemed to jar something loose. He almost became oddly serene, almost as though he didn't care about his situation, or this fight. Remy could see it in Julien's face, he was very subtly taken aback by the renewed look on the LeBeau-son's face. It would not make any difference Julien would attack his prey the way he did all the rest.

~*~" This isn't just about you, its about the family. And you really think that "wife" of yours will survive another sundown if that manic wins?!"~*~ Jean-Luc added. Jean-Luc added that last part because he understood that his son held some sort of affection for the girl, and Remy needed all the motivation that could be throw at him. It didn't occur to him that his son was no longer listening. It was moments before sundown, and a man then stepped in the middle of the courtyard, the man was named Gris-Gris. He was not an official Assassin member. Gris-Gris acted as a nonpartisan between the families, usually, but he was often seen as the Assassin's resident Voodoo priest, or so he liked to think.

"De challenge will be done wit' blades! As it always has been done. Have de Glides chosen they opponents?" Gris-Gris asked, eyeing the two sides of the courtyard through his thick long dreadlocks.

"We have!" Marius stated. Jean-Luc nodded at Gris-Gris in acknowledgement. The sun began to slip down below the horizon, quickly blackening the water of the bayou, vulnerable light dimmed everywhere.

"Fo' de Assassins, fo' whom de offense was committed against?" Gris-Gris called out, pointing his ringed fingers to the Assassin's side. Shadows begin to scatter, overwhelming corners; the darkness, itself, seemed like it was in a hurry to not miss the challenge.

"My eldest, n' only son, Julien Boudreaux!" Marius called out. Julien then stepped forward and faced the rival family. He was eager to win this quickly, and even more eager to celebrate.

" N' what Thief will be defendin' dem'selves against de eldest Bordeaux son?" Gris-Gris asked.

~*~"My youngest son, Remy Etienne LeBeau!"~*~ Jean-Luc announced. Julien had never seen the boy this close before, he had the most intriguing eyes; he very much wished to acquire them. This close, he could now see that the LeBeau-boy was also much more beautiful of a specimen then he had originally thought. He immediately craved to have him. Julien was sure that he would be all the more breathtaking with his chest cut open and his ribs snapped back. He had never played with a mutant before and very much looked forward to it. Once he had had his time with the LeBeau-mutant, he would move on to his own father. His father allowed the monster to have their Belle, and, for that, he could not allow his father to live. It would not be the same kind of death he would bring to the LeBeau-son, it would be quick and discreet; he always felt that he would run the Assassins Guild better than anyone else.

~*~" I see so much as a spark come out of your mutant, you forfeit a whole hell of a lot more than your boy, LeBeau!"~*~ Marius threatened Jean-Luc as they stepped away from their sons.

~*~"Remy knows better. And Guild law says they use swords, so they will use swords and nothing else."~*~ Jean-Luc said, firmly, he could not smile, despite his superior plan. He was terrified, as only a father could be terrified when he saw his child in mortal danger. Jean-Luc forced himself to remain calm, he had prepared Remy's blade with a specific type of poison, incredibly deadly, but only harmful when the mixture was heated by any sort of friction. Remy would barely need to charge the blade with his kinetic energy, in order to get the compound active; it was his only chance for survival. He knew Julien was a much stronger fighter, he had a good fifty pounds on Remy, and was almost a foot taller. For that reason, John-Luc kept one hand over the dagger hidden in his coat. He would rather break every Guild law, and spit in Kendra's all-powerful face then lose his son. This was clearly a one-sided fight, but the Thieves didn't seem as concerned they should have been. By all rights they should have been cheering Remy on, or at least asking for a different member to take Remy's place. Some of them did not approve of their mutant member, but they knew that this played a role in Guild government and they would all suffer the consequences if Remy lost.

Belle watched from the second floor study windows and screamed in desperation as her new husband was forced to fight her only brother to the death.

"Daddy! DADDY!" Belle screamed, slamming her hands against the window glass. Her father couldn't hear her, and he was fair too distracted to notice anything but the situation in front of him. There would be no happy outcome in this for her, unless the fight were stopped in some way, if only the fight was cancelled, or even delayed. She ran to the study doors and pulled their metal handles until she was exhausted. Locked in, and forced to play as helpless audience. Tonight, she would lose either her older brother, her only sibling, or her best friend, her husband, or even more horrifying, both. The frustration was painful. She screamed, and raged, and cried within that large oak room. She ran from the windows to the doors, like a rat in a cage, she desperately looked for a way out. She furiously pounded her fists against the walls and cleared shelves of all of their books, she broke anything she could to get attention. The closer sunset came, the more she tore the room apart, until finally the room was dark. The sun was completely set, she fell to her knees, it was useless, no one could hear her and no one was in the house; everyone was in the courtyard, everyone was in attendance to the deadly challenge, and unfortunately, so was she.

In the courtyard, Julien wasted no time, the moment the sunlight disappeared, he made his attack. With fantastic speed, he raised his blade and came at the boy, in less then a blink, Julien was inches from Remy's face and their blades were locked. Jean-Luc held his breath, but as he had predicted, Julien came down on Remy, but he held his ground, and with all his strength he blocked Julien's 60 pound sword with his. The blades slamming together made a ringing clatter in both of their ears. Remy was successful at blocking the blade, but Julien pressed his down on the young Thief and forced Remy down to one knee. Just as Remy's elbows began to buckle, Julien crossed a fist and punched him in the jaw, which sent Remy straight onto his back. Remy couldn't believe how hard Julien hit! It was stronger than anything his brother had ever done to him, he saw stars for a moment. It was enough time for Julien to raise his blade over the boy's head. This was almost too easy for Julien, he wanted to see what the boy was capable of, before, literally, seeing what he was made of.

"Move, Remy! Move!" Jean-Luc said to himself, in terrified whisper. As though Remy could actually hear his father's words, he reacted just as Julien's blade came down over his head and rolled away just before the heavy blade came down, cracking the courtyard floor. Remy quickly sprang to his feet, he could tell that Julien was purposely slowing down. This what was his father had told him would happen, this was his moment, his only chance to charge the blade and cut Juilen. Remy made his attempt to charge the blade but, if he were to open his fist he knew he would see a very prominent glowing light, there was no chance of him extending the charge to his blade without it visibly glowing. He could not do what his father had instructed him to. Remy's chance to attack Julien came in the form of Julien, almost slowly, turning his back, in order to give himself enough force to lift his heavy blade again; he came at Remy once more. Remy could have easily cut Juilen across the back. Remy's chance came and went. John-Luc's heart dropped into his stomach. The Thief members at Jean-Luc side, nearly held him in place, the terrified father could have easily jumped into the fight after his son, but the other Thief members would not allow him to do so. They were already strategically putting themselves into their places as the fight reached a fever pitch.

~*~"Think! Think! Think! Think!"~*~ Remy told himself, he struggled to keep calm, so far, he was able to avoid Julien's more aggressive attacks, but this fight was far from over. His father's plan of using his mutant power to make his blade a poisonous weapon, was now, not an option. Julien took another heavy swing that could have easily loped Remy's head off. Julien made sure to have the broadside of his weapon out, he meant only to knock the boy into a concussion. The boy surprised him, he was able evade him better than he thought, but he was unwilling to wait for his prize any longer and the wine cellar awaited them.

The Thieves begin moving into place everywhere on Assassins property. As Jean-Luc had instructed them, their most skilled members selected their targets; making sure to kill the Assassins most skilled and strongest members first. Hidden Thieves were encircling the front of the home and cutting off all means of escape. Meanwhile, all Assassin eyes were transfixed on the fight in front of them, they could tell that Julien was moving in for the kill, how he would do it was still a mystery. All the Assassin's focus remained glued on the young Thief fighting for his life. Remy at some point, felt he had hit some sort of stride, he was oddly comfortable, and he was eluding and bounding out of every attack that Julien could throw at him. He may have been stronger, but Remy was moving unbelievably faster then anyone had ever seen. Remy was moving with, sudden, incredible swiftness; it was similar to that of an Olympic gymnast and he could easily pass underneath Julien's arms or even under his leg, if he was able to get low enough. This fight was causing Remy's mutation to adapt and change before everyone's eyes, but no one, not even Remy, would realize it. That same electric force Remy continued to fight back, was now slowly seeping into Remy's joints and muscles, making him exceptionally agile and impressively flexible.

~*~"Fight him! Stop jumping around and fight! Damn mutie-coward!"~*~ An Assassin called out, he could not believe how the boy moved. It was like watching and a caffeinated jack-rabbit whip and jump to avoid being eaten.

"Kill it, Juilen!" An Assassin-member called out, he saw the look in the Thief's eyes, his garnet pupils almost lit up in a fiery glow. It was proof enough that the young Thief was a real-life monster.

~*~" Kill him, Juilen! Send it back to hell!"~*~ Another Assassin demanded. Marius watched intently. He was ready to attack Jean-Luc if he saw the boy attempt to use his powers. There was a moment where Julien nearly grabbed the boy by the neck to gain upper hand, but, remarkably, the boy dropped down and out of the way, he then hand-sprung with such force that he flipped over Juilen's shoulder, landing solidly behind him. That move was the only one that the focused Thieves cheered.

~*~"Jean-Luc, it's almost time. Uncle?"~*~ A Thief member, Benoît Chantôme-LeBeau, Remy's older cousin, whispered in Jean-Luc's ear, but as the Thief warned his uncle, dozens of Thief-members were scaling the walls of the Assassins home, they were positioning themselves on the roof. They were hiding in the trees, in the woods and bayou waterways. They were successfully blocking any possible escape, which wasn't terribly difficult, the was property was extremely land locked. The almost island-sort of property was easy to defend, but also, unfortunately for the Assassins, easy to surround. Jean-Luc began to regret his decision, seeing his child in the hands of a monster that would administer a fate worse than death, was sobering. The two things Jean-Luc loved most in this world were being a Thief and being a father; rarely did the worlds collide, but now that they had, it was more terrifying then Jean-Luc ever thought he could imagine.

" Uncle!" Benoît urged him to prepare, but Jean-Luc's eyes were glued on his son, and his hand prepared to draw his hidden dagger. Juilen was slowly losing his patience, he was clearly trying to end this as soon as possible. Julien grabbed the boy by the back of his shirt, and pulled his sword back with the intent on wounding him and ending this. Some how, Remy fluidly slipped out of his shirt and under Julien's arm. Remy nearly lost his sword in his sleeve as he, once again, eluded Julien. Remy was so quick that he was even able to slice Julien in the side. Remy's sword cut him, but it was superficial, it did little damage, all it succeeded in doing was angering Julien; he didn't take this assault lightly. Julien called out in surprise, he was enraged, the boy was slippery, but still frightened and weaker. He came at Remy once more and slapped his blade with such force, he succeeded in whipping the blade out of Remy's hands. Julien then slammed his forehead against Remy's, knocking him on his back. Julien would not give the boy a chance to squirm away this time; Julien plunged his heavy sword into Remy's deltoid muscle, pinning him to the ground beneath him. This is where Julien would end this, he would knock the boy out with his heavy blade and he would finally have control of the Guild and his prize.

"UGH!" Remy screamed. All at once Julien was on top of him, practically sitting on his bare stomach. Once he had a firm grasp of Remy's neck he pulled the blade from Remy's shoulder, which caused Remy to scream a second time. Julien was finished with this fight, he prepared to hit him on the side of the head with the side of his heavy blade, it would render him unconscious and unable to continue the fight. The hungry look in in Juilen's eyes said everything, and Remy decided at that moment he would not die here. That dammed-up force within him, the force that Remy had been holding back, the same thing that Remy perceived as a tidal wave of power began to flood down from his shoulders to his feet and even into each individual toe. This was Remy's mutation, the same way that a boxer's body would use muscle memory and instinct to protect themselves, Remy's mutation was quickly adapting to protect him. The restrain Remy had been using to contain this unbridled force that was crumbing by the sight of his father's terrified eyes.

" Remy!" Jean-Luc called to his son, he could no longer hold himself together and slid his concealed dagger directly to this son's hand. In a fraction of a second, Remy grabbed it, charged the blade and plunged it into Julien's neck. Everything for the exception of Remy's own heartbeat fell into a deafening hum. With his father's life in the balance, as well as the rest of his family, Remy found that part of himself, that dark violent place, and he thrust the blade into Julien's neck . The shocking and unbelievable sight dumbfounded the large group of men, the only thing that pierced the air of the awestruck crowd was Belle's ear-tearing scream. Remy didn't even feel like he was a part of this, he felt like he was watching a movie. Julien released Remy and stood up, rather quickly for a man with a dagger through his neck, and took a step back. The look on Julien's face was pure shock, he couldn't believe, or understand, what had just happened to him. He dropped his blade and gently touched the handle of the glowing dagger in his neck, he seemed as though he was trying to comprehend it, trying to understand what it was. The dagger lodged into his neck prevented him from bleeding out instantaneously, if removed, it would have taken only moments for him to bleed to death. He took two more staggering steps back before fully realizing what this moment was: it was his death. And it had come to him in the most unlikely of ways: a boy, a scrawny, terrified boy. Before Julien could attempt to pull the dagger from his neck, he looked up to the study window. And there he saw his sister, her doll-like face became twisted by the same realization of what her brother had just come to understand.

~*~"Bother!?"~*~ Belle said in a horrified whisper.~*~ "BROTHER! NO! NO!"~*~ Belle screamed, as she slammed her palms against the windows. She watched her brother looked up at her with concern in his eyes. Belle understood immediately, the concern wasn't for himself, it was for her. His eyes begged her for forgiveness, he had failed her. "JULIEN! JULIEN!" Belle cried out in agony, and slammed her hands against the glass, so fervently, that it began to crack. She continued to scream her brother's name as she watched his eyes rolled back into his head. She then saw the horrible glowing dagger in his neck and looked to Remy, whom was laying at her brother's feet. "REMY, DON'T! PLEASE!". Belle screamed, begging, as she bruised her arms, wrists, and hands against the spider webbing cracks of glass. With the crowd of men aghast in silence, Remy could hear his best friend screaming from above. His best friend, his wife, was pleading with him, because she knew that look in his eyes. Remy felt himself falling deeper and deeper into an area of his mind where the death and violence were a little more okay; where he was bred to understand that violence was just a part of him, it was his heritage, it was his right. And at that moment, as Julien staggered in front of him, unable to continue his fight, and the pressure of the glowing blade stopping him from bleeding out, Remy made his decision. ~*~"REMY! REMY, FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, DON'T!"~*~ Belle's terrible screech made no difference, Remy had already made his decision years ago. Remy's terrified eyes went wild with hatred, he hated Juilen and he hated how afraid of him he had been all these years. Following in his birth right, he reacted in the age-old tradition of Assassin-Thief hatred and had set the blade to explode. Just as a powerful gun shot would do, the explosion blew away half of his neck, nearly decapitating him. The explosion sprayed Remy and the Assassin's behind them with blood and bits of hot flesh. The force of Remy's kinetic blast shot Julien's body to the ground, and his massive body fell on top of the young Thief.

~*~"WHAT WAS THAT!?"~*~ An Assassin member called out, Assassins' shock did not last long. A string of outraged questions and accusations followed the group of awe-stuck and horrified men.

~*~"J-Juilen...?"~*~ Marius said in an inaudible whisper, he looked down at his hands and chest, covered in his son's blood. He was afflicted with total shock, and before he had a mind to react, he was grabbed by several Thieves and stabbed in the side. He went down immediately. All at once, it was as though he were surrounded by Thief faces; it was a take over.

~*~"WHAT?!"~*~ a slew of confusion came over the group of Assassins. They had never witnessed anything like it before. Since the boy had squirmed out of his shirt he was topless, and no one saw any explosive; it left some the men temporarily baffled. Other Assassins wasted no time with confusion and went on the attack.

"DADDY! DADDY, NO!" Belle screamed in absolute pain as her heart tore in half. She voiced her pain for her father, but she was still reeling from the horrific death of her older brother. She could not begin to think about how her father looked being swallowed up by the group of Thieves Guild members. The glass she had been relentlessly pounding on, finally shattered, sharp pieces of glass fell every where. Fragments of glass, fragments of her life, fell into pieces all around her. Belle felt sympathy and understanding for her brother in a way only a good sister would. She knew that her brother was an ill man, but he did not deserve death, he needed help, he needed understanding. She understood her brother's sickness too late, she could have done something to help him. She wanted very much to jump through the window and cradle him. Julien had been right about their father, he wasn't the one who would have kept them safe. Marius did nothing to help his son. Julien wasn't the the sibling that failed; it was her! She was smart, smarter than anyone knew, she could have done something to protect him, but she chose to remain blind; just like her father. Now she would never have the chance to help him, he was sick man and Remy killed him. Her brother was gone. Remy was working through a numbing haze, he tried to comprehend what he just did. The kinetic blast was the largest he had ever tried before it rang out so loudly that he and much of the crowd was deaf for a moment. The voices around him were an inaudible mumbling, until slowly, voices became more distinct, and by then, all chaos had broken out. In one maddening moment, he had made a decision that didn't even feel like he was the one that had made it, he killed a man. He had killed a man, and even more frightening, he was happy. The real monster was dead. However, Remy's relief was short-lived. Assassin hands grabbed Remy from the ground, but as they lifted him, gun shots went off and he was quickly released. The men that had grabbed Remy fell to all sides, they had been shot by roof-top bullets.

"REMY!" Belle called down to him. The fear and terror she felt overwhelmed the confliction of caring for her brother's murderer. No matter what she would feel about Remy later, and no matter whose fault everything was, she needed her husband to live. She looked into his face among the chaos and she was relived to see that Remy's eyes were not the same wild eyes that murdered her brother, they were her best friend's. He felt relief for another brief moment when he saw that Belle was alive and safe for now.

"Get back!" Remy called up to her. Not knowing what to say, Belle pulled away from the window, but only slightly, she could not bring herself to lose sight of Remy. She did not want to risk losing him in the madness, but she became immediately concerned when a Thief-cousin grabbed his arm and began pulling him away. New fear struck her, already panicked, heart. She couldn't believe it, was he actually leaving? She couldn't believe Remy would even consider leaving without her. At the edge of the property she could hear air-boat motors. Surely Remy would break into the house, break open the door, and take her away from the danger. They vowed to be married to each other, and every day before that they promised to keep each other safe. He would never abandon her; their entire lives they were at each others side, no matter the danger. They needed each other more now than ever.

"C'MON! We got ta go!" Benoît Chantôme-LeBeau, Remy's older cousin, grabbed him by the arm and urged him away. Benoît was given a single job and very clear instructions by his Uncle. Jean-Luc ordered his nephew to collect Remy and bring him to a safe house in the city, and he would come for them when it was safe.

"But-" Remy protested.

"We gotta get gone, Remy! Now!" Benoît yelled at him. Remy looked to his cousin and then back at Belle. Briefly, he thought of going to Belle's side and taking her to the safe house with him but the moment she saw the blood shed around him he became horrified. The moment Remy's cousin raised a gun and shot an attacking Assassin right behind Remy, he could no longer stand to be there any longer; he could not deny the overwhelming feeling of fear. Not only fear of what he was witnessing but what he had become. The look on his face was his own heart breaking. He couldn't bring himself to yell anything out to his wife, as he was being pulled away. He painfully tore his eyes away from Belle's, and took off.

" REMY?!" Bell was shocked he was running away he was actually leaving her "NO, REMY! DON'T LEAVE ME! REMY, PLEASE!" Belle didn't know a broken heart could break a second time, or that it would hurt as much as the first time. She screamed her husband's name once more, but he didn't look back. Even when a hail of gun fire tore through the second floor study. Belle dropped to the ground and she covered her head, she did the best she could to protect herself as bullets tore apart the study. Everywhere bullets destroyed and splintered the study shelves, doors and furniture, until it was barely recognizable. When she managed to take quick peeks in between gunfire, she had completely lost sight of her husband; she was now abandoned. The gunfire seemed to last forever. Below, the one-sided fight raged on.

"KILL HIM!" Both sides screamed at each other. Though, most Assassins followed the no-weapon rule, a few revealed hidden weapons; those men stood to fight. Everywhere, Thieves attacked Assassins all at once, the unarmed Assassins were taken completely by surprise. They were fully invested in the drama of their fallen teammate, they did not suspect that the Thieves would attempt to break tradition by launching a full-out attack. The Thieves had been following every rule and tradition to every detail, ever since before the wedding. It was a foolish mistake on their part, as now they were being slaughtered. Breaking glass could be heard from the window up above. Belle attempted to scream out down below to stop the fight, but it was clearly useless, and every time she attempted to look out the window a stray bullet would only be within inches of her. She sank down on the glass-covered floor, she could not watch anyway, as her family and friends were being run through with blades or picked off by hidden snipers in the trees.

"KILL ALL OF THEM!" Thieves called out, any men with hidden weapons were shot by roof-top snipers. Those that ran to their boats were picked off by hidden shooters in the trees. Hidden in the high-grass were younger Thieves, whom were instructed to shoot the ankles of Assassins that escaped to the front and side lawns. They were to be left alive for the moment, so that certain Thieves could settle their personal vendettas and revenge.

~*~"Never trust a goddamn Thief!"~*~ Many Assassins repeated as they lay dying. It would be the most violent massacre in the history of Guilds, and just like after a heavy rain, blood soaked the grass and puddled in the lawn and courtyard. Men, as young as 13, lay with their throats mercilessly slit or their faces half obliterated. One Thief had taken Julien's blade and began hacking away, slicing the heads of Assassins down the middle, as they fought back or hid; they looked as if you had taken the photo of a man face and had cut it down the middle with scissors. The screaming and blood-shed would continue for less then an hour, but Belle waited for hours until she no longer heard screaming. All she could hear after another hour was men speaking, even laughing. She laid still for nearly three hours more, until she heard no voices at all, and the return of cricket chirps filled the dark house and lawns.

"Daddy?" Belle thought, for some reason she couldn't say it aloud. She didn't intend to use the darkness as a means of cover, but the moon-less night protected her from any assault by some far-ranged sniper. She did not care, however, she had hoped to be shot. She would have gladly died with her family, but death was not in the cards that night. Instead, as a good Assassin-woman would do, she gathered her mutilated brother's body and dragged him over to her father's body, so that they would lay next to each other. Belle then, painfully, pulled and pushed every single uncle, cousin, nephew, friend, every Assassin member to the sink hole at the edge of the family property. She would say a prayer for each body that she placed into the mass grave, and with every tear she would shed, she would say their names and beg for forgiveness. She begged God for mercy, and if she were to live with this guilt, then she begged to not live it alone. Imprisoned in a dark, and isolated in a house surrounded by death; She would momentarily consider suicide, but she knew she never could. God must have heard her; God must have taken pity on the little bride, and while filling in the grave of her brother and father, God gave her back her father. Marius Bordeaux barely survived, but thanks to his daughter and the Guild-law immortal Kendra, he lived.

Later, as the weeks turned into months, and the months to years, Belle's heart grew cold and deranged. As her brother had been inflicted with evil, Belle began to adopt it as she grew into a women. The love and dedication she had felt for her best friend and husband became disfigured and twisted. She became obsessed with having the marriage and companionship that she had sacrificed so much for. The crushing loneliness, burning hatred, and conflicting need for love and revenge from Remy, changed Belle from the cheerful and delicate girl she was, to a vengeful, hard woman with an obsession for her husband's love, and most importantly, his retribution. With her father's guidance, she would become the Assassin leader that would bring the Assassin Guild back to life. She was determined to have be recognized, and that she would have the control, revenge, and love, she deserved. Every night, for years, Belle would speak to the night sky; she would ask where Remy was. Was he thinking of her? When was he coming back? Even if he was alive. For a long while she thought Remy was dead. Why else wouldn't he come back for her? Her father told his daughter time and time again that he was never coming back and that a son of Jean-Luc could cared for no one but himself. She refused to believe her father, until she had devised a plan to kidnap Jean-Luc. Marius approved of his daughter's plan. Though she said it out of anger, and perhaps to spite him, he knew that something like kidnapping the all-powerful Thief leader would serve several purposes: it would show that the Thieves Guild weren't invincible, and that they could be brought down. And also, if they were successful, they would be able to lure back Assassins in hiding, as well as new members, and Belle would have her answer. She would finally know what happened to her mutant-husband.

---

(Months ago...)

Belle's plan had worked in every sense, after they had initially kidnapped Jean-Luc months ago, it had taken almost no time at all to flush out the Thief prince. Like a good son, he had come to the rescue of his father. Belle was shocked, so shocked in fact, that once she recognized him she was paralyzed. She couldn't confront him, she had thought he was dead, but not only was he alive, he had moved on with his life. She watched him race through the old Assassin Masion with a strange and beautiful young girl, no doubt she was a mutant like Remy. Seeing them work together and watching Remy closely she could clearly see him working with a cool, clear head and he was full of confidence. It didn't take long for Belle to come to the conclusion that after the day he had left her screaming his name, among the crowd of slaughtered Assassins, he had went out into the world and he never looked back. He had mastered his mutant powers, and honed his abilities as a thief and lived the life she had always wanted, and he had done it all without ever planning on coming back for her! Belle would study their security tapes desperately trying to catch a glimpse of her husband's face. And not once would his concern ever shift to finding his betrayed wife.

Though Belle's father was eager to take, both, Jean-Luc and his mutant son, Belle called off their reinforcements. They could have taken the Thieves and, perhaps even the mutant-girl's group of mutants, but Belle knew that they wouldn't have been able to do so without taking on serious damage. They had no idea what these mutants were capable of, and she was confident that they could regroup and kidnap Jean-Luc a second time. And the second time Belle would make sure that the stakes were higher and that she would have a chance to get back much of what she had lost.

Watching her husband say good-bye to the young girl that he had recused Jean-Luc with, was rage inducing. The girl had a group of others with her, other mutants that had come on a very military-looking black plane, Belle watched. Remy did not board the plane with the other mutants, he did not seem welcome. It didn't disturb her so much that Remy was retrieving his father with another women, that sort of thing made no difference to her, but it was when they said good-bye to each other, that broke Belle. She was around the same age as the girl was when she had married Remy, and though she had gone through dangerous lengths to help Remy, she remained coy to how much she actually cared for Remy's well-being. The sullen girl was, most certainly, attracted to him. But the way he was with her, and the way looked at her, it was the same heart-broken look that Remy had given her on the last day they had seen each other. He cared for her! He held on to her hand because it hurt to let go, it was all so obvious to Belle, she knew him too well to ignore it. The sincerity in Remy's eyes was genuine, and just before the other mutants could pull the girl away from Remy, he clutched her hand; he had given her something and he said something that echoed in Belle ears: "You be fine chère, You got people watching over you." He was clearly speaking about himself. As the girl wasn't forthcoming about her feelings, neither was he, and he didn't want to come out-right and say that he would be looking over her, but he cared for her enough to be there. Belle could clearly see it in his face, and hear it in his voice, that he truly meant to keep an eye on her. Belle could no longer follow him, shoving her men aside, she demanded that they all return to the house and pack up. It was time to move, and it was time to make much bigger plans. It was a boiling betrayal, she had trusted him, and while she was being imprisoned by Jean-Luc, Remy was free to do what ever he wanted! He could have come to get her at any time, but he turned his back on her and continued to turn his back on her every moment he didn't save her, and finally Remy would insult her deeply by living the life she had dreamt of, and the final painful blow came by him keeping his promises to this mutant-girl that would never know him the way she did.

It would only take a matter of months for Belle to devise another attack against the Thieves Guild, and this time it would be overwhelming and devastating. Marius had a majority of say over Belle's orders, and though he didn't need to speak out against his daughter much, he stepped in once he saw that the LeBeau-mutant was alive and, once again, his daughter was clearly shaken.

"Call off yo' Rippers, Belle." Marius said seriously. He had tried to put himself in charge of his daughter's plan to kidnap Jean-Luc for the second time. If possible, he would rather the Thieves find out he was still alive than expose his daughter to Remy LeBeau if the boy was, in fact, still alive. He gave orders for Belle to stay out of sight, now that the Thieves no longer had the power to keep them imprisoned, he even attempted to send her away.

~*~"What?! Now? You can't be serious! We are in line to take the city back!"~*~ Belle couldn't believe that her father was trying to remove her from the Assassins while the most critical plan was within their grasp.

" Dis gonna take a lot. Ah know you can do it, but so can Ah, without you. Now that we can leave, you best go-"

" This is about Remy. Isn't it?! It doesn't matter anymore, Daddy!" She knew that her father was disturbed by Belle calling off the Assassins and Rippers after seeing Remy again. She had made some excuse about the LeBeau's having other powerful mutants fighting along side them and that they aided in Jean-Luc's rescue. She said that she had cautiously called off the men to regroup, but Marius knew it was a lie. His daughter didn't want to admit that seeing her "husband" again had caused her to freeze.

"You shook, baby! See it in yo'face! N' dem Rippers is startin' ta get wild! You do as Ah say n' you leave!" Marius demanded, as sweat began breaking out on his forehead and neck. Belle knew he was right on both accounts, the Rippers were starting to become bolder, and Assassins members were reporting overly violent incidents being done by the Rippers. Marius' mind immediately went to his deceased son's old habits and was eager to remove his daughter from the situation. His heart began to race with fear, the sins of his son were beyond disturbing and after losing him so horrifically, the thought of Belle ordering others to do the same deeds was causing him great strain. He never intended his daughter to be at the forefront of the Assassin's Guild, he was by no means healthy, but now that he was walking again, he was ready to regain his place as leader. And he was sure that in all of the chaos of rescuing his father, Remy LeBeau didn't even notice him. Marius also looked considerably different, older, he had lost much of his hair, and not as healthy as he was before his daughter's wedding night. Marius would also be careful that Jean-Luc never saw, or heard him, or any Assassin member while he was being held by Belle's Rippers. Marius knew his enemy well, and he knew if he gave Jean-Luc a reason to doubt that the Assassins were still active, he would believe it. And of course, Marius never made himself known; it was essential that Jean-Luc believed Marius was dead, which proved to be quite simple; one of Jean-Luc's greatest flaws was denial. Marius knew his enemy's son well too, it was clear to him that the LeBeau-mutant would never genuinely care enough for his daughter to actually defy Jean-Luc, and it was clear to him that Belle had some sort of preexisting relationship with the boy. He was disappointed that his daughter was carrying on with a Thief, but for her to think that it was anything more than a ruse to lure her in was aggravating. For her to hold out some ridiculous hope that Remy LeBeau gave her a second thought was frustrating. In Marius' eyes, the Thieves had used his daughter's heart to dismantle the Assassins, and her emotional response to seeing Remy again was proof that it was happening again. He was correct in assuming that seeing her estranged husband alive and well, disturbed Belle greatly. The pain in her eyes was obvious.

"This revenge is my right too! I can't leave, Daddy." Belle reasoned. Her anger with her father began to grow, but her demeanor became puzzled as she watched her father open and close his fist, as if he were trying to get feeling back into his fingers.

"Ah tell you what yo' rights are! N' you gotta right ta live outside o'dis bayou, like you always goin' on 'bout!" Marius said, he then clutched his chest as he gave his daughter his firm orders.

"Daddy?" Belle asked as she watched her father fall into his seat and tightly close his eyes. " What is it?! Daddy look at me!"

"Get, Gris-Gris!" Marius said gripping his chest. Belle ran off to fetched the closest thing they had to a doctor. To Belle's greatest fear, her father had suffered a heart attack. Ever since the attack on her wedding day, Marius had never been the same; his health never returned completely. He had would suffer from a weak heart for the rest of his life. All of the excitement and stress of becoming a fully functioning Guild again had exhausted him. The final straw was the thought of the nightmare that had plagued his son, returning to take his daughter, was enough to induce a heart attack.

"It ain't good, girl." Gris-Gris said, as he monitored Marius' heart. Belle sat next to her father's bed, rocking herself from side to side. "We gotta stop de movement den?" He asked, now that Marius was bedridden, he couldn't imagine the Assassins going forth with the second attack to take the Thieves Guild and control of the city.

"No." Belle said firmly. Her eyes shifted from fearful, to a sort of crazed focus.

"No?" Gris-Gris asked. He wasn't entirely sure what the Assassin princess would do. Today showed that together, Marius and his daughter were powerful, and effective. Now, with Marius down, he was unsure of what Belle's next move would be.

"We go forward...under me." Belle sounded determined, she could not afford to break down at her father's side again. She had wept at her father's side for years and it was time to stop. After seeing that Remy had not only betrayed her, but had also carried on with his life, she needed to do the same. In the years she was held by the Thieves she had realized what she was capable of. After the relative success of kidnapping Jean-Luc, she believed anything was possible, and after seeing Remy alive she regained her unwavering need for revenge.

"What 'bout yo' father?" Gris-Gris asked. He had come back to the Assassin to assist in their promising take over. Gris-Gris was a fickle coward, and he made little secret that he looked out for no one but himself. He would easily abandon them if Belle became unreliable, but he hoped very much that the Assassin princess would succeed; after all, if Belle was able to regain control of both Guilds he would raise along with them.

"Have you ever seen him question me? Get me mah Rippers!"

---

(Present day, Assassin's Masion)

After they had taken Jean-Luc so easily the first time, as Marius had predicted, hiding Assassin members began to emerge. They were excited and eager to become the Guild that they once were. They trusted Belle's leadership immediately, despite her unorthodox decision of creating an Assassin subgroup called "Rippers"; they were a disturbingly violent group, but they were willing to follow her and her Rippers if it meant power again. Belle had sent a young Assassin envoy, Elie Boudreaux, to send the message about Jean-Luc to Remy. He had not lived as a Thief member for quite some time, but Remy knew that an envoy-delivered message demanded that he come alone. And just in case Remy was stupid enough to bring any of his mutant friends with him, Belle had an idea of what she was dealing with, and for that reason, Belle called on Kendra to remove the mutant problem. Kendra seemed to delight in the idea of seeing mutants, and she was secretly over-joyed to contain these "super-humans". Kendra was disappointed that she had missed them the first time, but was intrigued by Belle's broken heart, she did not understand why there was pain in her voice or why the woman looked so shattered, but she was interested to understand, which is why she agreed to assist the Assassins further, and contain the possible mutant visitors.

Just like the first time, Belle had lead the Assassins and Rippers well. The second attack she had made on the Thieves Guild was far more aggressive, Jean-Luc's kidnapping became inevitable to Jean-Luc himself, as his allies fell and his resources began falling apart. She had orchestrated the gruesome Ripper killings to exact revenge and impose fear into the hearts of all Thieves. So violent were the killings, some Thief members left the state, others knew the tides of power were turning and began withdrawing from the public eye. Remy had done an excellent job of staying under the radar, for a while, but Belle had been watching Remy from the moment he got to the bayou shore and departed from his group of mutant companions. Though, she had not seen it herself, she had gotten word that Remy and the mutant-girl that had accompanied him in his father's rescue the first time was with him, along with three others. Kendra made quick work of them, everything was going according to plan. Even Remy's timing was perfect. It was a another stab to the heart to Belle that Remy could arrive in New Orleans not even 3 hours after he received word that his father was in danger again.

Belle stared deeply into Remy's eyes, as he knelt before her on the black and white marble floor, and her staring down on him, on the high marble platform. He had grown into a devastatingly handsome man, with the same garnet eyes that had, both, loved her and abandoned her. His legs had gone weak, and he had dropped to one knee at the sight of her. He was experiencing the same stunned shock she had when she had seen him after all these years.

"All dis time..." Belle said in an enraged whisper, it was practically a low growl. She stood on a elevated white marble stage, with deep purple curtains. She felt a surge of emotions as she looked down at him. In front of her was her estranged husband, on one knee and his mouth dropped open in disbelief. It was his turn to have that same paralyzing shock. "You never came back on yo' own. Did you?" Belle said sadly shaking her head, her heart was still clearly broken, and now, with all this time that had passed, it was not only her heart that was damaged, but her mind as well. "De night you came ta recuse your father, Ah saw you! You were alive! All dis time, n' you never were man enough ta find me?! Save me?!" She hissed " You know what it been like fo' me?!" Belle demanded, she almost couldn't formulate the words, she was a fire-storm of emotion. Angry for so many reasons, hurt for a many more, and shockingly, she had a small part of her that was ashamed of the love she still had for him. For years, all she had wanted was her dearest friend, and even though, day after day he disappointed her by never coming for her, it was difficult to undo the days before he had abandoned her, the days where he had come to her aid any time she needed him, time and time again.

"Belle, Belle..." Remy said to himself in an inaudible whisper. his voice was muting itself. Remy's heart felt like it had stopped, it was all true everything he had attempted to avoid was now crashing down on him. Every word she spoke was true, he hadn't tried to find her, and he never attempted to get any closer than the city limits, because part of him didn't want to know. She was telling the truth he hadn't ask about her, nor did he come back to New Orleans to check on her, and the one time in years when he did, he turned his back and ran off with Rogue. The worst part of all of this is that he would never regret the decisions that he made, even now he wished he could run and never look back; facing Belle was worst than he thought it would be, soon it would become all the more horrifying. She then stepped off the stage and confronted him face to face. She was a tall woman and in her heels, she was the same height as Remy. Her eyes burning into him, her face only inches from him, closely enough to kiss him. " Ain't you got anythin' ta say? " Belle whispered in angry disbelief.

"Ah..." Remy started, but that was it. It was all he could say. He searched the corners of his mind, but nothing was good enough; there were no appropriate words for this, but silence wouldn't do either. The longer Belle studied his face, the more she soaked in the fact he was alive and well, and the angrier she became with his silence.

"Say something! " Belle screamed, as she slapped him across the face. Any other woman in the world and Remy would not think twice of the perfect thing to say, but with her, he was speechless. He only succeeded in making her more upset. Belle's voice echoed through the large ballroom, the hard slap across Remy's face echoed just as loudly. That stinging slap did take away some of the shock, he wasn't able to formulate much, but he did manage to speak.

" Ah-Ah didn't..didn't know..." He was breathless, he barely recognized her. She was no longer the sweet, doll-like girl, with big dreamy blue eyes. She resembled Julien! It was horrifying, her eyes were like ice and she looked enraged and ready to attack. Her honey-gold ringlets were gone, and now replaced with straightened gold layers, pulled into a tight ponytail. The proper and lady-like clothing she would always wear was gone as well, and she was wearing form-fitting black and crimson Assassin-fencing padding, and for the exception of a backless tank-top with a light silk shawl draped across her back, she looked prepared for a fight.

" You do know! Thanks ta you n' yo'...yo'...SHOW HIM! " Belle choked on her rage, she could no longer speak and tell Remy of the imprisonment she suffered at the hands of Jean-Luc. She would much rather show him her rage than speak it. Two men pulled on thick gold ropes, which pulled back the deep purple drapes, it was almost the type of stage that royalty would be introduced on, the high stage was about four feet above the black and white marble floors, and on the stage were types of crucifixes, four of them. The two of the stands hung two men, they were his two uncles, Moussa and Laurent, the hateful uncles that had spoken with Henri earlier that night, but had refused to speak with him. Remy almost couldn't comprehend what he was looking at, both Moussa and Laurent's mangled corpses portrayed a cruel and horrendous final moments. Remy saw that the murderer had cut open their chests and had spread the ribs and lungs out like a bird. When he was a young boy, Remy had only seen this done once before, on an unfortunate opossum that Julien had gotten his hands on, but never on an actual person. The blood from his fellow Thieves had been pooling under Belle's spike-heeled boots, and was only now dripping down the front of the stage. The depraved ritual had clearly taken place recently and on that very stage. The walls were red-slathered with fresh blood, it was so fresh that it was still dripping down the white marble walls. Remy hated his uncles, but no human being deserved this, their faces were slashed up, almost beyond recognition and their throats had been slit multiple times. Remy had done work for drug cartels, ruthless big business, even violent political figures and he had been witnessed to violence before, but it was nothing close to this. It was the indescribable horror of watching men that he had known his entire life, with their bodies mangled into rotting angels, with flesh of their backs spread out like wings and their chest cavities open with snap-backed ribs. Their viscera had spilled all over the stage, they had been put up like some sort of decoration! It was exactly the way Julien would have done it. Belle had inherited the same sadistic traits that her brother had. Remy couldn't face that he had a hand in making her this way. Sickness and overwhelming shock forced Remy to quickly turn his back to Belle and the stage, an arm across his stomach. He was never a man that could handle this sort of violent depravity, it simply wasn't in him to do this sort of thing to another person; he thought Belle was the same way, and much of his misery stemmed from realizing that his beloved friend was no longer the person he remembered.

~*~"My father wouldn't approve, but Julien would have been proud. My brother!"~*~ Belle demanded. Marius wouldn't have approved, but his failing health allowed Belle total control of the Guild. Since John-Luc's first kidnapping, Marius's health began to fail steadily ever since their wedding night, he had become bedridden recently, and Belle wasted no time in getting Remy back to New Orleans. Her extremists ways weren't questioned, because they were yielding results. The Ripper members smiled at Belle's work. How they loved her! The Rippers were a small group of about five men and one women, they all shared a collective passion for savage murder; they were all very aware that their fellow Assassins were unnerved by them, but they were a necessity and very effective, so the Assassins cautiously tolerated them. The Rippers watched with their fellow Assassins. They watched their beautiful leader speak to their enemy, they had never seen the man before, but they hated him immediately. This Thief had wounded their Assassin leader and had been a key player in dismantling the original Assassins Guild years ago, for that, he could not live. They laughed at the Thief-son's eyes bulge with shock, so weak he looked, with his back to Belle's artwork proudly displayed on stage. The coagulated blood dripped like syrup from the empty abdominal cavities of the two men, the brown-red pools dripped onto the stage and down to the polished white and black marble.

~*~" You didn't...! You couldn't, not you!"~*~ Remy's last resort was denial. His first and best friend, his childhood companion could not be capable of such horrifying cruelty.

"Remy! Catch!" Belle said.

"Huh? Ugh!" Remy's knee-jerk reaction was to catch what Belle tossed at him. The moment he had it in his hand, it squished and he looked down to realize it was a human heart, he dropped it instantly. If he hadn't already thrown up the bourbon his brother had given him, he would be fighting it from raising to his throat.

~*~" Kept the hearts..."~*~ Belle said commenting on how Remy ripped out hers. ~*~" It's your uncle Laureates. I knew you were never fond of him."~*~ Belle said coldly. ~*~" Do you like my handiwork Remy? I'm not as good as my brother was. He could keep them alive for hours. I haven't figured that part out yet. I guess I just need more practice. Whether I get that practice or not will be your choice."~*~ Belle then pointed at two of her Rippers. They nodded in acknowledgment, and dragged two men from the darkness, one was limp, and beaten; Remy immediately recognized his father, the second man fought under the Ripper's grip, it was his brother Henri. Remy's heart went from feeling like it had stopped in his chest, to beating like a jack hammer. Remy found his voice, it had been knocked loose by seeing the only two men in this world he would risk his life for, being held with the intent of being gutted like deer.

" B-Belle dis, dis ain't you!" Remy was bewildered by the sight. He had no idea what to say, he felt the most profound horror in the depths of his heart. Remy fought the need to fall to his knees again, as he saw his father tied to one of the crucifixes with no resistance, thankfully, it was clear that he was still breathing. His brother fought, and was given a heavy punch to his stomach to make him more compliant.

~*~"N-no! You cannot want this! W-we never wanted this!"~*~ Remy demanded, his shock was slowly being over taken by outrage.

"We?! Ain't no we! Dere be Thief n' dere be Assassin! N' you got a score ta settle!" Belle angrily screamed, her voice filled with rage. How dare he talk of 'we', when he had abandoned her and left her for dead.

~*~" You might think that you need to do this, but you don't and I won't!"~*~ Remy angrily demanded. Of course, Belle was not one to tolerate anything but remorse from her estranged husband.

"Dis ain't a Thief city no mo'! You ain't got a choice now, Neg! Bring dem out! " Belle demanded. Her eyes glowed with crazed anger, as the second floor of the ballroom began to illuminate with a green-white light. The Assassins parted for a apparition with four dark shadows in tow. The brilliant apparition manifested into a translucent form of a woman, it was Kendra of the floating spires, the God-like immortal that reigned as Guild law. The four dark shadows could now be seen clearly, they were people, three men and a woman. ~*~" Abide by the old ways or else! We got a special guest with us tonight to make sure that everything goes as it should!"~*~ Belle's crazed and intense stare shifted to Remy, and in her face all he saw was Julien.

"Belle, No!" Remy screamed. He hadn't seen Kendra since he was a young boy and she was just as fantastic and astonishing as she was when she had manifested from the ancient tithing grounds. And the fact that Kendra held his teammates so easily was enough to shock him silent again. His eyes briefly darted to Rogue and the others. He could not linger too long, he knew if Belle caught him looking at his teammates for too long, Belle's anger was unpredictable and she would do anything at this point to hurt him.

"Gambit?!" Scott called out, they had heard everything, but had seen nothing of it until now. The sight of what they could see on that stage rendered them speechless. Rogue could only whisper Remy's name to herself.

"Every body here now!" Belle announced, with her arms outstretched. " It's time we finish dis!" Belle was given two sheathed swords, one she threw at Remy. He did not catch it, he let it fall and it clattered to the ground. ~*~" Now you see what's at stake."~*~

"Belle we...we don't need to do this-" Remy said, trying to tap back into the friend he knew and loved. It was useless, however, Belle nodded to the men on stage that held his father and ruthlessly stabbed him in the side. Jean-Luc groaned loudly.

"Father! Don't!" Henri called out, horrified. All eyes darted back at Belle, whom was drawing her sword from it's sheath.

" Yes...yes we do, Neg. Stabbed yo'Daddy where you stabbed mine! Only Ah give you a chance ta get him back! Fight o'Ah kill 'em all!"

---

Vivaldi's Four Seasons: Winter so pretty, really worth a listen: watch?v=nGdFHJXciAQ