Disclairmer: I do not own the X-men

Remy was about to get into the changing room when Storm called him. He turned to see her holding a black uniform with an X on the chest.

"Gambit, this is your new uniform. All the X-Men have one and since you're going on your first mission, it's time for you to have one as well." She handed him the uniform with a smile.

"Well… Merci, Ororo." He didn't really know what to say. This entire situation was making him feel incredibly uncomfortable.

"Call me Storm while we are on our missions, Gambit." She tapped his shoulder and went to change her own clothes.

After Remy had changed too, he stared at his image on the mirror and sighed. When he thought everything was a chaos already, there he was making more bonding.

'It's just a uniform, nothing else. Chill. Go there and eliminate the clues.' His body returned to its always relaxed and cool posture, a sly smirk on his lips. 'Now you keep that damn face on.'

"Ready, Cajun?" Wolverine asked.

"As always. Shall we?" Gambit put on his trench coat and nodded towards the doors. "Ladies first." He smirked.

"So what are you doing standing there? Move." Both of them chuckled and then Gambit shrugged.

"Ok, I'll be a gentleman and face the danger first."

Wolverine muttered something and they left for the hangar. Instead of taking the Blackbird, they would take a small helicopter. Professor X showed up at the hangar and told them to avoid using their powers in public, and then when they got there he would use his mind power to paralyze everyone inside the security area, just like he had done in a museum once. He would fly the helicopter and make sure they didn't have any trouble in landing it. Then, Storm took some time explaining how they would proceed when they got there, and some more time telling Gambit how they worked as a team and each one's role in case of a fight. Clearly, he took in all the information he could and asked many questions all the way until they approached the top of a business building in the center of New York City. Xavier focused with his eyes closed and they got the permission to land. Storm smiled at him and then distributed coats for all of them, except Gambit, so they would cover their uniforms while walking on the streets.

They wanted to be as discreet as possible so they parted in two groups to get to the crime scene. Storm went with Wolverine in the crowded street, moving as shadows, and not getting two glances from people. Gambit and Shadowcat climbed a building and kept their eyes focused on the white hair moving below them. They still had a long way till they got to their destination and Shadowcat seemed to be getting nervous with the silence. Keeping her mouth shut for too long was almost a torture and there were so many things she wanted to ask the man beside her. She tried to bite her tongue but it had a life of its own, and just as the focus of her concentration changed to jumping from a rooftop to the other and not losing her balance, her tongue slipped out of control.

"Are you feeling better? You got like, so nervous when you saw the news. I know how you feel. I used to cry whenever I saw those things on TV. You know, those people had a family, kids, dreams…"

She went on for a few more minutes and her words only made Gambit's stomach sink. He wondered if she would give him a break to answer, or maybe her quick train of thought would lead her to another subject, hopefully. However, Shadowcat kept on talking and soon Gambit's mind was able to become idle, focusing on climbing the higher buildings and keeping an eye on Storm and Wolverine. They had nearly reached their destination when something she said made his mind snap back to reality.

"So, Rogue was really gorgeous last night, don't you think?"

Gambit turned his head to her, surprised with the totally unexpected subject. He couldn't even imagine how she had gotten to that point and wondered how many things could go on at the same time in the petite girl's head.

"Oui, of course." He said, uncertain of what else to say.

"You like her?" Shadowcat's tone was of pure innocent curiosity, reminding Gambit of a kid.

"She is my best friend at the mansion, petite. I like her very much." He decided to be honest. Not completely honest but still…

"She likes you a lot too. But I don't think your eyes scream 'just friends' when you look at each other…" Suddenly, Gambit realized how perspicacious that 'little girl' really was. Shadowcat gave him one last grin and phased with him through the wall of the building, meeting Storm and Wolverine who were waiting for them on the corner of the street.

There were still policemen and reporters on the place and a few curious people stopped to have a peek, but all of them looked like statues, with blank looks on their faces. Other people passing by didn't seem to notice that, walking past them as if they weren't there.

The whole block was isolated and two small stores had crumbled. Gambit could see clear signs that Avalanche had been there, like the crates and cracks on the street.

"Wow!" is all Shadowcat whispered.

"Remember what I said before. Gambit, search for the security tapes. Wolverine, try to identify any familiar smell, such as Pyro or Magneto. Shadowcat, check the safes in the bank. I will inspect the stores to see if they left something behind, or even a message. And don't make a mess! Let's go." Storm's orders were clear and direct, and they went straight to work.

Gambit headed straight for the bank, with Shadowcat by his side. He thought she would be used to those kind of missions but her sad eyes made him feel a bit doubtful about it. His stomach turned as he saw the entrance of the bank nearly reduced to ruins. The walls had huge cracks and the paint was blistered where fire had scorched it, there were piles of debris everywhere, and as he tried to cross the hall to get to the security room he stepped on something soft. Gambit took the burnt doll and breathed hard, holding back the impulse of blowing something up.

"What is it?" Shadowcat approached him, covering her mouth with her hands. "Oh God…"

"She is alive. Only guards o' the bank died." He whispered. "Dis fille is alive."

Gambit put the doll on his trench coat pocket, his hands shaking, and moved on to the security room, as his team mate moved to the safes.

The place was nearly intact, and three men with lab objects in their hands, which he assumed to be the crime scene investigators, were bent over a desk. His eyes quickly scanned the place and stopped in a plastic bag in one of the man's hand. There was a video tape inside it and Gambit didn't hesitate to take it. Checking around to see if anyone was coming, he sat and decided to watch it. He immediately regretted it. The chaos and despair in the scenes reflected inside him. He saw when Pyro set the entrance doors on fire; people trying to escape through the broken glass windows; a guard carrying a tiny girl in his arms as she screamed when her doll fell from her hands; the same guard getting back inside and falling down as the ground started to shake; the fire was out of control…

Gambit stopped the tape and removed it. A slight charge and he could smell the burnt tape. There was no expression on his face as he stood and put it back where it was. His brain just had one concern at that moment: keeping him sane. Part of him just wanted revenge and another part knew he had to keep his cool and check for the other tapes quickly. There was no way he could let the X-Men track the Brotherhood.

After he had found all tapes and destroyed any evidences, he returned to the street and met Wolverine and Shadowcat. Storm took a few more minutes to return, but she hadn't found anything significant.

"They didn't leave anything behind. What did you find, Wolverine?"

"Can't really smell anything in particular. Too many… burnt stuff." His last words came out grumpier than usual, and no one dared to ask more about it.

"I found something though." Shadowcat stepped forward and pointed to the bank. "They took money, that's for sure. They broke into some safes and took all the money inside."

Storm thought about it for a while and then looked around. "Maybe if we go beyond the security area the smell of all that money can give us a clue, don't you think?" she asked Wolverine, and he shrugged.

"Let's try."

It took them a few minutes walking around the blocks on the surrounding area, until Wolverine finally caught the smell of something. He walked faster and the others followed right behind him. It wasn't a short way and took about forty minutes until they reached a dead end: the sea.

"So they took all that money!" Shadowcat exclaimed with wide eyes.

"Don' think so. Look." Gambit pointed to three bags near a bush. They approached and found it filled with money.

"They left it?" Now the petite girl's eyes were nearly popping out. "Why would they leave it?"

"Guess they realized it would be hard t' get away wit' all dis cash. Especially after all the mess they caused."

"I don't smell anyone familiar. Pyro wasn't here, Storm." Wolverine walked around and made a negative sign. Gambit raised an eyebrow, slightly confused and impressed at how the Brotherhood had managed to dribble Wolverine. Where had Pyro gone?

"Let's go home then. It was probably a group of mutant vandals using their powers to get money. They must have freaked out when things got so out of control." She said and contacted the Professor. They waited and soon heard the sound of the helicopter approaching.

"So it was a real waste of time going there. I was sure it had something to do with Magneto." Bobby said when all the X-Men were sitting on the Conference Room and the group had just finished their mission's report.

"It wasn't a waste of time, because now we are sure it wasn't Magneto." Rogue said and Ororo nodded in agreement.

"And we found the money. I already called the police anonymously and told them where the money is. I just wish we had found something about the ones who did that." Ororo gave a frustrated sigh. Everyone around the table looked uncomfortable, including Remy but for different reasons. He had been thinking about how the Brotherhood had escaped so easily without leaving many traces behind, which wasn't usual. None of them had the tendency of being discreet and careful.

No one seemed in the mood to add anything else to the discussion so they all stood and left. Rogue seemed uncertain whether to talk to Remy or not. She was positive he was still shaken but didn't know if he wanted to be alone or talk. He seemed strangely idle to everything around him, staring straight ahead and walking firmly.

"Rogue, if you want to, just go there and ask if he wants to talk to you." Jubilee whispered to her, seeing the indecision on her friend's face. Rogue turned to look at her, shaking her head.

"Ah don't think Ah should intrude so much into his business."

"You don't look too certain about that."

They walked to their room in silence and Rogue only spoke when they closed the door.

"Jubilee, Ah know Remy well enough to know he doesn't lahke to talk about him. Whenever Ah tried before he would avoid the subject. Ah don't want to make him uncomfortable by forcing him to open up."

"I thought that mysterious charm was just… you know, charm." Jubilee shrugged.

"It's not. But Ah respect that. That's why Ah didn't talk to him. He knows Ah will listen when he feels ready to talk, so he will come if he needs meh."

Remy only stepped in his room to get the keys of his motorcycle. His curiosity and his anger were too strong for him to just sit there and wait for news. Anyways, the news wouldn't come soon, since he had destroyed his mobile phone. So he left for the Brotherhood as fast as he could. Not even the loud roar of the motor seemed to silence his mind. For a moment or two, he had completely lost attention to where he was going and had to return a few blocks to take the right direction.

It was getting dark when Remy finally arrived to the Brotherhood. He waited until someone opened the door. It was John.

"Oh, you. We've been trying to call you for hours. Where have you…" John was cut off when Remy grabbed him by the neck and pushed him inside, closing the door behind him.

"Murderer! Did y' enjoy it, bâtard? I hope y' did, because y' will never use yer powers again after I'm done wit' y'." Remy let go of his throat and punched him, making John stumble down the hallway.

"What did I do?! We were doing what you asked us to!" John replied, checking if his mouth was bleeding.

"I didn't ask y' t' kill anyone!" Remy screamed and pulled him up just to punch him again. This time, John took his Zippo and flames surrounded the infuriated Cajun.

"Hey John! Calm-down." Pietro showed up and put a hand on his shoulder, holding him back.

"Can't y' fight like a man? Hiding behind y'r powers, eh?"

"Will-you-shut-up? I'm-trying-to-save-the-house." Pietro complained but the flames disappeared and John jumped up.

"You'll regret this, you stupid Cajun." John tried to punch Remy but was too slow. He ended up with Remy's left hand around his throat again, this time pressing him against the wall.

"Non. It is y' who will regret every second o' suffering y' put those people through." His voice had never sounded that dangerous, even to his own ears. The energy was pulsing through his body making it glow dimly. John breathed with difficulty, not daring to look into Remy's eyes.

Pietro tried to get in between but ended up with a glowing card in front of his nose.

"If y' try t' get in the way, I'll take care of y' first. Cause I know y' were involved as well. Where is the money?"

"I-thought-you-didn't-want-it-anymore." He hesitated when he saw the other man's face. "Ok-ok. We-hid-it-on-the-sewers-under-the-bank. There's-a-map-on-the-kitchen's-table. Take-it."

"What's going on here?!" Wanda's furious voice suddenly came from the stairs and the lamps failed for a second. "You woke me up, you bunch of idiots! I told you my head hurts."

She stopped at the bottom of the stairs and her eyes scanned the whole scene. Remy didn't take his eyes from Pietro, who was pale like a ghost.

"Wanda, stay away. This is between me, Pyro and y'r brother. Then I'll get the others."

"You won't touch my brother." Her tone was low and dangerous.

"I'll do what I came here to do." He replied.

"Let go of my brother."

"Stay away…"

"Let go of him!" her voice raised.

"I told y' t' stay away!" He screamed at her, and before he even realized what he was doing, he turned and threw a glowing card in her direction. With on quick movement of her hand, Wanda deflected the card and it exploded on the wall.

"And I told you to STOP!" She screamed back. This time a lamp right above Remy's head exploded and a window broke upstairs.

Remy looked at her with a livid face, startled at what he had just done.

"Wanda… I'm sorry. I… I just lost it."

"I know how it is." Her expression was cold but she could hardly hide the worry in her voice. Her eyes pierced through his as if she was trying to understand what was going on inside him. Remy was the first one to break eye contact.

"Y' are protecting murderers. Are y' like them too?"

"What are you talking about?" She furrowed her brows.

"Didn't y' hear about their latest entertainment? It's all over the news." He took the little burnt doll he was carrying in his pocket and threw it at her.

She stopped the doll in the air with her powers and held it gently in her hands.

Remy headed for the kitchen. There was a map in it with some things written in red on the table.

Wanda was still staring at the doll when she felt a warm hand on her shoulder.

"I'm sorry." Remy whispered. For a moment, the girl kept staring at the doll then looked at him.

"I think I'm sorry too." She sighed.

"Didn't mean to hurt y', ever."

"I know. Just don't let it happen again, or it might be with someone who can't stop that card. You don't want that weight on your shoulders. Believe me, I know."

He nodded and walked to the door.

"Remy?" came Wanda's voice from behind him.

"Yeah." He whispered without turning.

"Is she alive?" Her voice was firm but he could feel the sadness coming from her in waves.

"Oui. But her savior didn't have the same luck." He opened the door and left.

Wanda stood there and listened as he took off on his motorcycle. John massaged his neck and approached her.

"That man is crazy!"

"Shut up, you moron." Wanda glared at him and he instantly closed his mouth. "Pietro, what was he talking about? What did you do?" She hissed at her brother.

Pietro looked around with a guilty look, waiting for someone else to answer and scared of her reaction. He sighed when John spoke before he could freak out.

"He asked for it. Gambit wanted more money for the job. So we went there and got it." as Wanda kept glaring at him, he went on. "Ok, we didn't really know how to do this and be completely invisible to the X-Men but that Essex guy that comes here at times gave us a clue on how to act. And it worked. Of course a few people got hurt but…"

"A few people died." She corrected him.

"So what?" Immediately, he knew he shouldn't have said that.

"So what?!" She approached him, clutching her fists, and the remaining lamps in the house exploded.

"It was for the cause!"

"No, it wasn't! It was for a damn sack of money! This had nothing to do with mutants or humans." She hit him with a hex bolt and once more John found himself on the floor.

"Sister, wait." Pietro called her.

"I should've let Remy do what he came here for. Do something like this again and I'm out. But not before I deal with all of you, get it? I'm here to fight for the mutant cause, and because Magneto got me out of that mad house. I owe him that, even though he was the one to put me there in the first place."

"It was for your own good." Pietro said, trying to hold her arm but she shook it off.

"I'm big enough to know what's good for me, Pietro. And killing people for stupid money is not on my list. Consider yourselves warned." She snarled between gritted teeth. With one last disgusted look to both men, Wanda stormed out to her room, slamming the door behind her.

She sat on her bed holding the doll in her hands. Yes, she had agreed to kill people. It even made her satisfied to see leaders of mutant haters' groups begging for mercy, or those damn politicians trying to bribe them so they would survive. Yes, she laughed a few times seeing the despair in their faces. But killing children and other innocent people…that had never crossed her mind and she never imagined it would get this far. Wasn't it the exact same thing mutant haters did when they killed and tortured innocent mutants? Mutants that never had anything to do with terrorism or anything like that.

She had been there before… killing innocents. But it wasn't her choice. When her powers emerged, she got out of control. Wanda sighed when she remembered the awful things that happened whenever she got angry at someone back then. Magneto tried to help her control it in the beginning. He always referred to her as his pride, his powerful daughter. But when he realized her powers were uncontrollable and extremely dangerous to anyone near her, he didn't think twice before locking her in a mad house. Wanda laid down, the events of that day rushing through her mind….

'The rain was getting heavier as her dad drove on the highway. He said they were going to a nice place. She just couldn't wait to get there even though she was a little upset her brother wasn't coming too. They usually did everything together.

"Daddy?" She asked from the backseat.

"Yes?" Erik didn't take his eyes off the road.

"You seem angry. What happened?"

He didn't answer and a few minutes later she repeated the question.

"Is it because of what happened yesterday? I told you it wasn't my fault. It just… happened." She completed.

"It's never your fault, is it?" His voice was ice cold. "How many times have we tried to practice?"

"But dad…"

"You never tried for real, Wanda. You think it's nice what you do with your powers? You must think it's a good way to get what you want from people. That's why you never controlled it. You never wanted it under control."

"Dad, I've tried! I always try but…"

"That's enough of your excuses. I gave you the option of helping me, working side by side with your father. But you have been a selfish girl. It's not in my hands anymore, Wanda." At that moment, he stopped the car in front of an antique looking building, where a few people dressed in white were already waiting at the front door.

"Where is this place?" She asked, her hands starting to shake.

Erik left the car and opened her door. She could see the disappointment in his face, mixed with anger and a small hint of sadness.

"Maybe they will help you more than I did. They will take care of you, and make sure you don't hurt any more people. Or yourself." He whispered, taking her hand and pulling her out of the car.

"Who are they?" Now her hands were definitely shaking, and the lights of the street flickered.

"Wanda, calm down. How many times have I told you to stay calm?" Erik looked preoccupied and waved at the nurses at the door.

"I'm not staying here!" she tried to get into the car again but Erik closed the doors using his powers and locked them. "Dad!" The nurses held her and also asked her to calm down but it was too late. The lights on the street exploded and the windows of the psychiatric hospital and of the car broke violently, some of the glass striking her and the nurses. She tried to unlock the car through the broken window, cutting her hands on the remaining glass, tears blinding her. Erik held her by the shoulders and pulled her away from the car.

"LET ME GO!" Suddenly the car was completely deformed and was set on fire.

"Wanda, stop it!" Erik screamed. One of the nurses came running and injected something on her arm.

"No… no." Wanda gave one last resentful look to her father, and then lost consciousness.'

Wiping a lonely tear from her face, she tried to convince herself it was really for her own good. But the years locked alone, the electric treatment sessions… that just made her anger boil inside. She stood and walked around the room until she calmed down. Of course the past still infuriated her, but she couldn't ignore all the good things he had done to help her.

Magneto only showed up recently, saying he found someone who could help her control her powers: a woman named Agatha. The training was intense and it lasted for months, but it was worth it. Agatha was not only her teacher, but turned out to be her best friend. She was an old lady, rigid but with a kind heart, always willing to help and listen. Wanda learned how to control her feelings and also her powers. For that, she was really grateful to Agatha and, even if it was hard to admit at first, to her father. Her powers were driving her insane, and finally getting control instead of being a hostage of her own powers was a blessing.

Magneto was able to convince her to stay, fight by his side, as it should have been from the beginning. She wasn't very happy with that, but she had told him she would do anything in exchange of his help. He not only fulfilled his part of the agreement, but also let her stay there for as long as she wanted. Now, it was her turn to do as agreed, she thought, lowering her eyes.