"You- You're my mask,
You're my cover, my shelter.
You- You're my mask,
You're the one who's blamed.
Do- Do my work.
Do my dirty work, scapegoat.
Do- Do my deeds,
For you're the one who's shamed."

Sad But True. Metallica
 
 

Woo, girl, Remy teased. You tryin' t' make clouds of y' own?

Rogue smiled without answering aloud. She didn't need to. Remy LeBeau was an entirely separate personality inside her mind, and he could sense all but her most private thoughts. Once a living, vital man, he'd fallen in love with Rogue as, much to her own surprise, she found she loved him too. She'd never allowed herself to touch him, however, until the entire X-Men team she belonged to were convinced they were about to die. Then she kissed him and because of her uncontrollable absorption powers, everything he was, all his psyche, memories and powers, were drawn into her. Forever, His body hung on for a long time without him, but lacking anything in it to keep it alive, it eventually died, leaving Remy with no way back.

Rogue sighed with a familiar sorrow as she barrel-rolled, her hair fanning around her like a halo of sunlight. Much as he loved her and tried to hide any discontentment, Remy wasn't happy in her. Not completely. No matter how much privacy she'd given him by cutting off her access to his memories, no matter how much she tried to do what he liked, Remy was still trapped. Caught in a prison formed by the body of the woman he loved. Those bonds, she knew, couldn't help but chafe him after a while.

What'cha thinkin', chere?

"Oh, nothin'. Ah was just' enjoyin' the view." She dove towards the ground. "We better get back to the mansion, sugah. We have ta help Bobby get the groceries."

What, again?

"Would ya rather go with Bishop and Betsy ta the dump?"

Not 'specially, no."

She laughed, putting her worries away as she flew back to the mansion.

"Okay, we've got 14 boxes of 'Chunky Bits' cereal for Beast, bikini wax for Psylocke and a really bloody t-bone steak for Wolverine. That should be everyone." Bobby looked up from his list. "Have we forgotten anything?"

Rogue pushed the last of five grocery carts through the checkout stand and shook her head. Suddenly, she straightened up and pointed at a pack of cigarettes in a display case behind the check out woman.

"I take one of dose," Remy said and Bobby blinked. "De unfiltered kind."

"Um," Bobby whispered. "You don't smoke."

"Been smokin' longer dan I know you, homme."

The clerk put the pack down on the counter. Rogue stared at it. "What is this? Ah don't smoke. Take it away."

Confused, the clerk started to do so.

"Hey!" Remy protested. "Dose are mine!"

Bobby covered his face with his hand. "Oh, God. Here we go again."

"Ah am not smokin'," Rogue stated.

"Y' don' have to. I do it for you," Remy replied.

"Y'all are not gonna suck carcinogens into mah body!"

"Whatcha worried 'bout, chere? Y' be partially invulnerable. Ain't gonna hurt y' none."

"That's not the point, sugah, and ya know it! Those things are disgustin'."

"So whatcha sayin'? Dat we not gonna do what I want?"

"Not when doin' what ya want means poisonin' us both."

"Well, fine den!"

"Fine!"

Rogue stormed out of the store.

The clerk, who'd been watching Rogue's changes of personality and accent in amazement, turned slowly to Bobby.

He smiled weakly. "Um, she's in a play."

The clerk nodded uncertainly, then made record time checking him out.

Bobby found Rogue out in the parking lot by the van, her arms crossed and her head hunched into her shoulders.

"Rogue?" he put a hand on her shoulder., "Are you all right?"

Rogue didn't answer for a minute, then nodded. "Ah'm fine."

He breathed a sigh of relief. He'd seen Rogue's temper tantrums before and when she got mad, she tended to throw things. Which, given her superhuman strength, also tended to be large.

"And Gambit?" He asked reluctantly.

"He's sulkin'."

Bobby tried desperately to think of what to say. He'd never particularly liked the Cajun, but Rogue was a close friend and he didn't like seeing her hurt. Sometimes he wished Remy's personality had died with his body, just so Rogue could get on with her life. He'd never tell her that though.

"Do you want to talk about it?" He asked finally. "I've got a great shoulder."

She smiled, already looking more like herself. "That's all right, sugah." She opened the back of the van and began loading groceries into it.

"Bobby," she said nonchalantly. "Do ya think y'all be okay gettin' the groceries home by y'self?"

He looked at her sideways as he hefted a bag of potatoes. "I should. Why?"

"Ah was thinkin' maybe ah'd leave on mah trip t'day."

"I thought you weren't heading out until tomorrow."

She sighed and sat on the bumper. "Ah know, but ah think Remy an' me need ta get some time ta ourselves. Work things out. Ah'll be back in a week."

"I guess so. Will you tell the professor?"

"Ah'll go ta the mansion and tell him. Ah need ta pick up mah stuff anyway. Ah just gotta get outta here."

He smiled reassuringly. "Okay. Send me a postcard, though."

"Ah will." She looked around to see if anyone was watching. "Caldecott County, here ah come." She flew off and Bobby went back to loading the van.

In the bushes beyond the parking lot, someone watched her go.

Rogue had just finished packing a bag with some clothes and toiletries and was looking for something to pin her long hair back with, when Bishop appeared in the doorway.

"I see you've decided to leave early."

"Aw, Bish, honey. Are y'all checkin' up on me again?" A smile took the sting out of her words, but still Bishop shifted uncomfortably.

Born in a future where the X-Men were betrayed and murdered by one of their own, Bishop had come back in time determined to stop the killer, whoever they may be. He'd always suspected Gambit, and now that he was inside Rogue, he'd taken to watching her. No matter how confused she made him feel. In his time, Gambit was very old, but alive and well. Bishop still couldn't reconcile himself to the impossibility of the Cajun losing his body and what that meant about him.

"It is necessary for security reasons that I know when all X-Men leave the mansion for extended periods of time."

Rogue smiled again, then cursed as her hair came loose. "Damn! Ah hate it when this happens. Y'all wouldn't have a bobby pin on ya, would ya, sugah?"

To her surprise, he handed one to her.

"Why, Bishop! Y'all are as prepared as a boy scout!"

Anyone else would have blushed, but Bishop only looked at her stoically. "I was trained by the XSE to always be prepared for anything." He turned and left.

Rogue stared the way he'd gone.

Was he serious? Remy asked.

"Ah think so, sugah."

Fig'res. Dat man's got a stick shoved so far up his-

"Remy!"

Blushing, Rogue picked up her bag, opened the window and flew out.

Across the continent and to the north, in Canada, Jessica Baker walked through a park, luxuriating in the warmth of the sun. Happier than she'd been in years, she filled her lungs with clean air and smiled. Only six months before, she wouldn't have been able to do this. She'd been on the transplant list, barely able to breath at all without the help of machines.

That had all changed. There were a new pair of lungs in her chest and she felt as though she could do anything. All the hopelessness she'd experienced before were gone.

They returned a moment later. Some form of net flew out of the bushes to wrap around her. Hopelessly entangled, Jessica fell to the ground. She tried to scream, but a hand clamped over her mouth.

"You just keep quiet, lady, and this'll be over quick."

Terrified, Jessica looked up to see a tall man bending over her. He had a long, sallow face, lanky, black hair and a drooping mustache. He was dressed in what looked like metal and had a dozen different weapons draped over him.

With her eyes, Jessica begged to know what he wanted with her. He didn't answer as he gagged her, slung her over his shoulder and carried her to a van parked beyond the bush. Jessica tried not to panic as he opened the back and threw her in.

Then she saw who was waiting for her.

"Hello, my dear."

Screaming soundlessly into her gag was the last thing she ever remembered.

The tree was still there. Still hanging above the bank of the Mississippi river. The rope was still there as well, perfect for swinging out over the water.

Is dis where it happen, chere?

Rogue took hold of the rope and pressed her cheek against it. "Yes. Ah was all decked up in mah first evah party dress on accounta ah had a birthday party ta go ta. But ah didn't much like the birthday gal an' ah hated the dress, so ah came out here ta swing a bit. Ah guess ah was hopin' ah'd fall in, so ah wouldn't have ta go ta that dumb ol' party. Cody-" She swallowed against sudden pain, but Remy's presence was warm in her mind and she went on.

"Cody followed me. He'd always been chasin' me, evah since ah first moved here. Ah thought he was just a friend, though, until he kissed me."

An' your powers kick in for de first time.

She sighed. "Yah. Ah was so traumatized that ah just lay there for three days. We got found eventually, but poor Cody never woke up and now he's dead." She clenched her fist. "Ah nevah understood that. We only touched foh a second. The effect shoulda worn off in a minute."

Maybe your powers started out de same way mine did. Sorta fluctuate t' extremes 'fore settlin' down. I 'member when I was thirteen, I charged everyt'ing I touched. Once, I charged an entire buick in three seconds flat. On my best day, I couldn't do dat now.

"Ouch. Y'all are lucky ya didn't kill yaself."

He chuckled as she sat down on a boulder. I would've, chere, if not for my father. Once, when I was sleepin', I charged up m' whole bed with me in it. Rogue winced at the thought of Remy lying on a bomb that big. Somehow, he got me outta dere wit'out wakin' me up or settin' off de bomb. When it did go, it took out 3/4 of de house. Luckily, we were all outside by den. For a year after dat, though, I had t' sleep wit' my hands tied to de headboard so I couldn't touch nothin'. Dat's how long it took me t' learn how t' control my powers.

Rogue bowed her head. "At least y'all did learn."

Yeah. He was silent for a long time, watching the river through her eyes. So, he said at last. You been comin' back here ev'ry year since den, neh?

"Every year," she agreed. "On the anniversary o' the day ah hurt Cody. Ah used ta visit him in the hospital too, but now that he's gone..." She sniffed.

Quickly, Gambit hugged her with her own arms. Hey, now, chere. Dat was an accident. You can' blame y'self for what happen.

"Any more than ah can blame maself for what happened ta you?" She retorted bitterly.

What?

Suddenly, Rogue felt her focus shift as Gambit pulled her into her subconscious, a colourless realm made up of her memories of different places. She could see Remy there, a flash of colour amongst the gray, looking much as he did in life, as he remembered himself.

He was taller than she was, and stronger looking, though she could bench-press 50 tons while he had only a human's strength. His hair was longer than it had been originally, a direct response to her waist length hair, though it remained red-brown. She'd always half expected him to get a thick white stripe through it like hers had. His eyes, however, were red on black, identical to hers. Identical since she'd kissed him, that was.

Remy stood in her memory of his bedroom in the X-Mansion, the place most familiar to him. He put his hands on her shoulders, and she was amazed again at how real he felt to her. Remy'd assured her that it felt real to him too. For him, of course, except for when he rode as an invisible backseat driver in her mind, it was the only reality there was.

Gambit's gaze was stern as he looked at her.

"I don' want t' hear you blamin' y'self for me anymore. I be sick of it! Sure, it not perfect and sometime it really suck, but it ain't goin' t' change. I ain't leavin' you ever!" He bent his head and kissed her gently. "An' even if I could, I not want to," he added softly. "Not when it mean givin' up on bein' dis close t' you."

He drew her to him. Rogue let him, leaning her head against his shoulder while he nuzzled the back of her neck. She knew it was irreverent, but Cody'd been gone a long time, and when she'd allow herself to admit it, she knew she was tired of carrying this pointless grief around.

Still, it was hard to release old habits. "Remy," she whispered. "We shouldn't be doin' this."

"Why not?" One hand slipped under her shirt to massage her breast while the other moved down between her legs. "'Fraid your body gonna fall in de river while you in here?"

Both hands moved and Rogue moaned, tilting her head back to receive his kisses. She felt pleasure.

Then pain!

Rogue screamed and wrenched back into her body. Her side burned even through her invulnerability as she hit the ground and looked up to see the man who'd shot her. Her eyes widened in recognition, even though he stood 100 feet away, partially obscured by bushes,

He smiled. "Hope you enjoyed that, girl." He patted the rifle. "I had this made just for you."

"Scalphunter!" She gasped.

The Marauder nodded. "Yup. Now have another." He aimed again.

Instinctively, Rogue moved. Her foot lashed out, intentionally kicking a small pebble on the ground towards him. Normally, she'd never have had a chance to hit him at that range, but with Gambit's personality came his powers. The most obvious of these was his ability to charge inanimate objects with explosive kinetic energy. More subtle was a spacial awareness of everything around him, whether moving or still. It helped him to dodge and move with an agility that was astounding, and to hit whatever he aimed at. Combined with Rogue's strength, that awareness turned the pebble into a missile that flew right at Scalphunter and went down the barrel of his rifle before he could fire.

The rifle exploded.

Burned, the Marauder was thrown back. Rogue had no idea if he was dead or alive, though. She was already airborne, searching inside herself for any sign of Remy. He must have been more heavily stunned by Scalphunter's shot than her, for she could feel no sign of him. Rogue prayed that was all it was as she tried to gain enough altitude to reach cloud cover.

It was no use. The world suddenly turned inside out and nausea overwhelmed her until she didn't know anymore whether she was up or down. Screaming, she slammed into the dirt, her speed digging a shallow trench behind her. Somewhere inside, something clicked and shifted.

Remy opened his eyes, grabbed a handful of pebbles and rolled, throwing them out in a wide arc as he did so. The small stones exploded, covering him as he ran for the woods.

Rogue! He thought. You okay, chere?

There was no response and the Cajun cursed, dove around a tree and came face to face with a massive, bald man.

"Got you now, X-Man!"

Blockbuster hit him as hard as he could and Gambit flew backwards, crashing through trees and bushes before rebounding off of a massive boulder.

Dizzily, he fought to stand up, but the same vertigo that had affected Rogue was now focusing on him. Desperately he fought it, throwing his cards, but without luck.

A woman's voice laughed at him. "They're not very good at using each other's powers, are they? I guess there really are two people in there."

Relieved, Gambit felt the nausea clear. Then a shadow fell across him and he looked up to see a black-haired woman dressed somewhat like Scalphunter sneer at him.

Arclight, Remy thought.

"You make this too easy," Arclight taunted and slammed her fist into the ground. A shockwave rolled out and Remy tried to avoid it, but he was still too dazed to move fast enough. The ground fell away from beneath him, then flipped over to bury him in darkness instead.

Everything was hazy, indistinct. Hard to focus on. Harder to think through the cotton filling their mind.

"The sedation is holding at acceptable levels."

"Excellent. Transfer her to the monitoring bed and hook up the EKG.

Were those voices? They could hear the words, but couldn't understand them. Not sure what voices were, they floated in the haze, uncaring. Whatever it was, it didn't matter. Nothing mattered. They were one. That was all that was important.

"Sir, preliminary EKG readings show that there are two personalities in her mind, but they've merged into a gestalt of one individual. I can't separate the two of them."

"Yes, I see that. It must be a side effect of the sedative. How unfortunate. We will have to wake them both before we can proceed. Bring the restraints."

"Yes, Sir."

Something tugged at them, bringing with it a sensation of... discomfort. Unable to react, they could only endure, until a prick brought everything swirling into nauseating clarity.

It was Rogue who came back to herself first, more used to her body's reactions than Remy, to find she was strapped down on a cold, metal table. Instinctively, her first concern was for Gambit.

Remy? She thought inwardly, still feeling somewhat sick from the drugs. Also, she was more than a little overwhelmed by the memory of total oneness with him that she'd experienced.

Nnwah Ra huh... R-R... Rogue... R-Rogue? He managed after a while. Chere?

It's me, Remy. Are y'all right, sugah?

I-I t'ink so, chere. Where are we?

Ah don't know.

Not sure what else to do, she tested her bonds, They wouldn't give so she cautiously opened her eyes. She was in a laboratory. Monitors lined one wall, showing her vital signs, and a frightening array of wires and gadgets hung above her, ready to be lowered at any moment. On the far end of the room were several wide, clear tubes, reaching to the ceiling, all filled with some kind of energy field. A pair of lungs hung suspended in one of them. Perpendicular to her table crouched what looked like a high-tech coffin. It was closed.

Look like we gonna be some mad scientist's latest exper'mint, chere, Remy said.

Rogue was just about to respond when Mister Sinister stepped into her field of vision.

"Good morning," he greeted them calmly.

Oh, merde, Remy whispered. He felt cold inside her.

Remy? Rogue thought at him. What's wrong? She'd never felt him like this before and it worried her more than the sight of her captor.

Nothin', chere.

Don't lie ta me, sugah. Not now.

He hesitated. I... met Sinister b'fore. It was bad.

Ya almost got killed?

Worse. Came out wishin' I had. Don' let him see y' scared, girl. He uses it against you.

Rogue stared up at Sinister, not sure what to say to him, or to Remy. Like her and the X-Men, Sinister was a mutant, but he had no desire to help in Professor Xavier's dream of mutants and humans coexisting peacefully. Instead, he sought to create the perfect genetic strain of mutants and he didn't care who got hurt in the process. He'd tried to use several of the X-Men in his plans before, but until now, he'd shown no interest in her. Tentatively, she tried to pull free again. She couldn't.

"Your bonds are adamantium," Sinister told her. "You won't be able to escape." He stepped past her and she heard him moving about. Then a wire was taped to her temple.

"What are y'all doin' ta me?" she cried.

Sinister stepped back into view. "Do not try to fool me by using the singular. I know that the Cajun, Remy LeBeau, is present within your mind."

"Why does that matter?" Rogue asked, then blinked as Remy forcibly took over control of her voice. He'd never done that before.

"So y' found me, Sinister, What y' wan' us for, anyway?"

Sinister turned as a young, black woman stepped up beside him. She handed him a strange device that he pushed a few buttons on and handed back. She moved away again while he pressed another wire to Rogue's forehead.

"Well?" Remy demanded.

Sinister smiled, showing razor-sharp teeth behind black lips. The red diamond mark in the center of his pure white forehead gleamed dully as he leaned close.

"I believe you misunderstand my intentions, Monsieur LeBeau. I am not interested in 'both' of you. I am interested in 'only' you."

Rogue could sense how frightened Remy was, but he had such an iron grip on her body that she couldn't say anything. He wouldn't be able to keep up that kind of control for long, but for now, she couldn't speak, except mentally.

Let me go, Remy! She demanded. I wanna find out what he wants.

"What you need me for?" Remy asked, quietly ignoring Rogue and obviously trying to hide his fear.

Sinister's expression didn't change. "Approximately fourteen months ago, a team of X-Men broke into one of my labs and destroyed it. I did, of course, have copies of all the machinery, but many thousands of genetic samples I did not have anywhere else were also lost. This set my plans back immeasurably and made the X-Men, in spite of their genetic advantages, more of a liability than they are worth, I cannot allow them to interfere again and I want you to help me destroy them."

Oh mah god, Rogue whispered.

Shh, petite. I c'n handle dis.

Rogue struggled as Remy fought to maintain control of her voice. Somehow, he managed it.

"Well, t'anks for de plot synopsis," he said dryly. "But I don' know what good I be t' you."

"You are ranked as one of the world's top five master thieves in certain circles and you know the X-Men's mansion. You will be able to bypass their alien security and shut it off from within so I and my henchmen may enter."

On a surge of rage, Rogue yanked her voice back. "Y'all can't expect us ta betray our own teammates!" She yelled.

Sinister had no problem telling who was speaking. "My dearest Rogue, I do not expect you to be a traitor. I expect your lover to be one."

She tried to spit at him, but he moved out of the way. "How can y'all expect that?"

"Because I know Remy far better than you do. He will do it, especially when he realizes that failing me will result in your death."

"'Scuze me, homme," Remy put in, now sharing Rogue's voice with her. "But if y' kill Rogue, y' gonna kill me too."

Sinister chuckled, a low, chilling, echoing sound. He walked over to the metal coffin and keyed the lid back.

"Tell me, X-Men. Have you forgotten my success at cloning?"

Both Gambit and Rogue were speechless, and Sinister moved back again to give them room to stare.

Remy's body lay on the table.

It was him, there was no doubt about that. Remy lay naked on the table, breathing slowly, eyes closed as if he were asleep. A monitor set by the head showed little or no upper brain functions.

"Dis ain' possible," Remy whispered. "My body was cremated. Dey burned it. Dere weren't nothin' left t' clone."

"Au contraire, my dear Remy. After you joined the X-Men, you had yourself listed as an organ donor. Therefore, upon your death, several people were presented with your organs. It was a simple matter for me to procure one of them as raw material."

Rogue's head whipped around and she stared with growing horror at the pair of lungs hanging in the tube. Somehow, they were still alive, still expanding and contracting. She turned back to him, her eyes blazing.

"Y'all are nothin' but a murderer!"

"It was necessary," Sinister replied, nonplussed. He loomed over her. "Now, here is my proposal, Remy LeBeau. I will place your consciousness into a new body, one which is identical to your old one. Then you will break into the Xavier Institute, shut down the security system so that the Marauders and myself may enter, and help destroy the X-Men. If you fail me or try to betray me in any way, Rogue will die immediately. If you succeed, you will both be released. Your genetic potential together gives you a certain value to me, so that I am not inclined to merely dispose of you. Otherwise, I will kill you both right now." His eyes looked like cracks of ice in his white face. "Do we have a deal?"

Remy stared up at Sinister, thinking furiously. He needed a way out, some loophole that would allow him to rescue Rogue. He knew he didn't have the power to attack Sinister directly, and there was no way he could take on all of the Marauders at once. All he could think of was to go along with this, and once the Marauders and Sinister were fighting, he'd be able to slip back for Rogue. The timing would be tricky and he knew he'd have to make his part of the attack look real, but he was sure he could pull it off. A familiar, cocky feeling filled the Cajun as he thought of how the X-Men would crush the Marauders into the ground. After all, they'd done it before.

Rogue spoke first. "Y'all forget it, Sinister. He ain't gonna do it."

"'Ey, chere! Let me talk for myself, neh?"

"All right. Tell him ta stuff it. Go ahead, tell him."

"Um..."

"Uh, Remy, y'all can start tellin' him anytime now."

Sinister crossed his arms patiently, listening to them argue in amusement.

"Uh, well... dat is..."

"Y'all can't be thinkin' o' agreein' ta this!" She was stunned.

"Ain't got no choice, petite. If I don' do what he wants, he gonna kill you!"

"Bull! Sinister ain't managed ta kill an X-Man yet."

"Dat don' mean he not gonna start!" He looked up at Sinister. "If I don' agree, you gonna kill her, non?"

Sinister nodded. "Of course."

"See?" he said, sounding just a little bit more smug than he'd intended.

Stubborn as always, this only got Rogue's back up more. "So? That's better than mah livin' when th' rest o' mah teammates are dead."

"So we join de Avengers. I don' wan' you t' die."

"Hah! Y'all are jus' trying ta keep ya own tail out o' the fire."

"Well, yes, but we ain' talkin' 'bout me. We talkin' 'bout you. 'Sides, I die once already."

"Ya promised ya wouldn't remind me o' that!" She wailed.

"Oh, Saints. Dis ain't de time for you t' start cryin'."

"Ah do not cry!"

"Oh, yeah? What about last week, when y' were blubberin' in de back o' de gym?"

"That wasn't me!" She shrieked. "That was you!!"

"So I not used t' havin' PMS!" He yelled back. "Stop tryin' t' change de subject. We gotta try t' stay alive here an' you makin' us look bad in front a de villain. Now, I am doin' dis."

"Ah am not the one changin' th' subject. And ah am not lettin' y'all get yaself hoovered out o' me ta go off an' help Sinister and' that's final!"

"Hey! You can' go makin' all my decisions for me!"

"Ah am not making ya decisions for ya, sugah," she replied, trying to sound reasonable, then immediately failing. "Ah'm merely tryin' ta keep ya from makin' a complete and total asshole outta yaself! Understand?!"

"I am not bein' an asshole. I doin' what any X-Man would do t' save a teammate."

"Joinin' th' enemy? That's the stupidest thing as ever heard!"

"Well, too bad! I love you an' I ain't lettin' y' die, so live wit' it!"

"Will not!"

"Will too!"

"Not!"

"Too!"

"Not!"

"CHILDREN!!" Sinister bellowed.

Both X-Men fell silent, staring as one at the mutant. Sinister took a deep breath, apparently trying to regain his composure.

"Now, if I hear you bicker one more time, I will slaughter you both and find another way to defeat the X-Men. Is that understood?"

They nodded, both embarrassingly aware of how foolish and out of control their argument had gotten.

You'd t'ink he never hear anybody argue like us b'fore, Remy thought inanely.

Not anybody over four, she retorted.

"Well, Mister LeBeau?" Sinister asked. "Have you made your decision?"

Gambit took a deep breath, snatched voice control from Rogue again and said, "All right, Sinister. I do it."

"Excellent decision," Sinister replied and nodded at someone beyond the head of the table.

Ya've lost ya mind! Rogue snapped silently as Sinister turned his back on them to watch a monitor. Y'all can't trust Sinister!

Desperately, Remy tried to reason with her while trying not to think about how Sinister would transfer him to a new body. I don'. But if I go into dis o' m' own free will, I c'n keep control of it and keep us all safe. You, me, an' de X-Men.

Her voice was heavy with unshed tears. Y'all are foolin' yaself, sugah. Sinister's gonna take ya, body an' soul, an' when he's done with ya, there ain't gonna be nothin' left.

I c'n handle dis, chere. It just be another job.

What about th' last time ya met Sinister? Ya didn't seem ta think that went so well.

He bit their lip. I... made a mistake. It won' happen again.

An' what if it does? We won't be th' only ones ta die, Remy. The X-Men'll die too. She choked back a sob. At least this way, we'll always be together.

Quickly, Remy sent all his warmth into her, along with his love. I go t' Hell 'fore I let you die, mah amour. You mean more t' me dan anyt'ing. I love you more dan de X-Men, my freedom or my life. I will keep you alive no matter what it cost me. I swear it.

Remy! Rogue cried. Don't do this! Don't leave me!

Ain't leavin', chere. Jus' tryin' t' save you. I - uh...

Remy felt it first, and far more intently than Rogue, a freezing sensation that permeated their skull, then rapidly spread through their mind, increasing in its intensity as it did so. Remy felt her squirm on the table, fighting its freezing effect, but found he couldn't muster the energy to do so himself. It was focused on his consciousness, not hers, making it hard to think, to connect to Rogue. As the minutes passed, her wails grew fainter to him and he could feel her awareness start to float away. No, he was the one floating, the room going fuzzy around him. He relaxed, unable to stop it from happening, or to care.

Then there was pain! Bright, hot, shattering, pulling. Remy LeBeau tried to scream, tried to fight; couldn't breathe, had nothing to move. No limbs, no body. Just cold dissolution and a second, separate consciousness that clung to him with all the strength in her heart.

Ah'm not lettin' them do this ta you! she cried.

Hot, cold, fear, pain; pulling, tearing, freezing, dying. Remy struggled to answer, didn't answer. Couldn't. Only Rogue's will held him to her, but he was still being pulled. Stretching, tearing...

REMY!!

"Release the Cajun or his psyche will be destroyed."

Elastic release, whip-snap rebound. Remy flew away from Rogue, pulled without resistance now. Pain turned back to cold. To dark; emptiness, silence. Time stopped, awareness ceased, life ended.

Warmth replaced it. Gambit heard a heart beating as he was pushed out of the darkness into light and warmth. Strange sounds assailed him as he lashed out with his newborn limbs, opened his mouth and took his first breath.

Suddenly, Remy sat bolt upright on the table, seeing his own reflection in the glass of a tube across from him. Alone in his thoughts for the first time in six months, he looked to his left, to see Rogue strapped onto a table, her eyes filled with tears. He saw Sinister standing beyond her.

Remy felt empty; painfully, horribly alone, as though half of him was gone. Half of him was, he realized. Forever.

What have I done? He wondered dimly.

Then Remy LeBeau fainted dead away.

"Pass the potatoes, Bobby, and stop thinking about freezing them."

Bobby grinned as he passed the bowl. "Would I do a thing like that, Betsy?" He asked innocently.

The telepathic ninja smiled. "Yes, you would," she replied as she took a spoonful and gave the bowl to Warren Worthington III. Archangel smiled back at her and shook his head at Bobby.

"Grow up, Iceman."

"What?! You're telling me to-"

A low growl from the other end of the table silenced all three of them.

"Quitcher bitchin'," Wolverine grated. "I'm tryin' t' eat."

"Easy, Logan," Cyclops interjected. "This is dinner, not a showdown."

Logan snorted at him and went on chewing.

At the head of the table, Professor Charles Xavier sat in his specially designed hoverchair and looked over his assembled X-Men. They were all there, except for Rogue and Gambit, all mutants banded together to fight for his dream of mutants and humans coexisting peacefully.

Scott Summers, coleader of the X-Men, sat to Xavier's right, his eyes covered by ruby quartz glasses to hold in his uncontrollable optic blasts. Beside him sat his wife, the telepathic, telekinetic Jean Gray. Wolverine sat next to her, then Warren and Elizabeth, Warren's metal wings folded into his back.

At the far end of the table was Ororo Monroe, the second coleader of the X-Men, able to control the weather. Rounding the table was Rogue and Gambit's empty chair, then Bobby Drake, followed by the furry blue Hank McCoy, Cannonball, the newest X-Man, and the time-displaced Bishop.

Xavier lifted his glass and cleared his throat. All heads turned towards him.

"I wish to make a toast," he told them. Glasses were raised. "I wish to toast the X-Men. For your successes and efforts, and for your determination towards fulfilling our mutual dream."

"Hear, hear," they replied and drank. Xavier smiled. "I also wish to thank Sam for his culinary efforts this evening. He did quite well."

Cannonball blushed. "'Twas nutin'. Ah'm used ta helpin' cook fer a lotta people."

"Nonsense," Storm replied. "Dinner has been delicious so far. I am very much looking forward to dessert."

Sam blinked. "Ah was supposed ta make dessert too?"

Everyone laughed and the small talk continued.

A mile to the south, Gambit crouched below a tree, staring down at the estate. He was too far away to see the mansion's lights, but Remy continued to stare, numbed by the emptiness within him.

Get wit' it! He yelled at himself. If y' don' manage t' warn de X-Men an' get away, Rogue is dead!

He sighed and stretched his new arms, staring at his fingers and wondering if Rogue felt as utterly alone as he did.

"Well, Cajun? Can you get us in or not?"

Gambit looked over his shoulder at the clone of the mutant Riptide. Beyond him was Scalphunter, Vertigo, Scrambler, Prism and Harpoon. Briefly, he let himself wonder how many more of them were clones and nodded with a grin. Reaching into a hidden hole, he twisted something and a part of the hill rolled away to reveal a door. Hopping down in front of it, he hit the override code to let it open without setting off the alarms.

"Dis is one of de ways into de Morlock tunnels. Dey go all de way under de mansion. "Dey're filled wit' stun beams an' booby traps, but I c'n disarm dem." He smiled nastily. "Should watch y' step though. Lot a' strange... t'ings down dere. Wouldn' wan' t' lose any a you."

The Marauders looked at one another uncertainly, but Scalphunter wasn't impressed.

"Don't forget we're the ones who killed the Morlocks in the first place. Just lead the way." He tossed him a strange bracelet. "And wear this."

Remy caught it. "What is it?"

"A homing beacon, for if we get separated. We've all got them. Don't take it off."

Slowly, Remy put the bracelet on.

"Come on," he told them, his voice cold. "We got a long way t' walk."

He lit a flashlight and headed into the tunnels, the Marauders close behind, while he pondered his chances for saving both the X-Men and Rogue. They were frighteningly slim, but nothing he hadn't tried a dozen times before and beaten. As he did, however, a deeper part of him couldn't help but dwell on Rogue and wonder if she still needed him as much as he needed her.

Angrily, Rogue paced back and forth in her cage, made of adamantium-laced steel and placed in a corner of the same lab she'd woken up in. She glared at the coffin Remy'd lain in until he was taken away.

How could ya do this ta me, ya damn stupid Cajun! She thought. What were ya thinkin'?!

She sat on the floor of the cell heavily. He was tryin' ta find a way ta save ya, sugah. She hugged her knees. Ah just hope he knows what he's doin'. A tear traced down her cheek. An' ah wish ah'd at least been allowed ta say goodbye.

Delicately, Remy cut the wires of the alarm system, careful to deactivate the backups at the same time.

I could set de silent alarms off so easy, he thought. An' de X-Men'll catch us 'fore we get up t' de basement. He looked back at the Marauders. But if I do, den Roguie's finis. I gotta see dis through.

He cut the last wire and the door separating the Morlock tunnels from the X-Mansion rolled open.

"Oh, this is sweet," Scrambler whispered. "They haven't got a clue that we're here."

"Shut your mouth," Scalphunter grated. "We're not in yet." He glared at Remy. "How do we shut off mansion security?"

"Cerebro an' de Ready Room be one floor up. De controls be dere."

"And you can deactivate them?"

"Of course, mon ami," Remy admitted freely with another grin. "De tech be de best in de world, but I know most of de codes an' I know 'nough t' bypass what I don' know."

Scalphunter nodded in consideration. "Then you can turn the defense systems back on the X-Men?"

Remy's smile turned grim. At least I don' have t' lie t' dem. "De 'puter's set up so dat only telepaths can really use it. I can only shut t'ings off. I can' change de programming."

"Oh, great," Vertigo groused. "Why'd we bring him anyway?"

Scalphunter's eyes narrowed. "You're not lying to us, are you, Cajun?" He made the title sound like an insult.

Remy's met his eyes directly. "I c'n get by de secur'ty. Dat's more dan any a you c'n do, ain't it? Dat's why I'm here, non?"

For a moment, the two men stared at each other, then Scalphunter nodded. "Fine. Then do it. Just remember that I'm watching you."

"O' course, mon ami. I wouldn' have it any other way." He slapped his shoulder and turned away. "Now, keep y' thoughts t' y'self. Dere be three tel'paths upstairs an' dey're better dan any secur'ty anywhere."

The Marauders fell silent as Gambit led the way up through the bowels of the mansion where the Danger Room was to the Ready Room. In spite of the seriousness of the situation, he was finding the danger exhilarating and his smile wasn't forced as he walked. Briefly, he considered giving a psychic "yell" to the Professor, then discarded the idea.

No, I can' trust de Marauders not t' figure it out, even if de team play 'long an' pretend t' be surprised. I gotta wait 'til de Marauders be distracted, den make a run for it. Sorry, X-Men, but I gotta do dis t' you. Think o' it as a extra special Danger Room exercise. Jus' hope y' forgive me for it.

Upstairs, the X-Men were crowded into the TV room in the second floor women's dorm. They were watching the movie "The Mask", howling in laughter as Jim Carey went through his antics. Xavier, however, couldn't enjoy it and moved to leave.

Scott looked up as he passed. "Is something wrong, sir?"

Xavier smiled. "Nothing, Scott. I just have some work I need to finish. Enjoy the movie."

He continued out of the room, passing Bishop, who was not at all amused by the scene with the dancing cops, and Storm, who was trying to talk him out of leaving. Warren and Bobby slipped by him at the door.

"Munchie run," Bobby explained. "Want us to bring you anything?"

Xavier shook his head. "No, thank you."

"Don't forget the beer!" Logan yelled.

Bobby grinned and ran after Warren while Xavier continued to his office.

The Ready Room was empty, the lights darkened. Quickly, Gambit turned on the lights and went to the main computer. Using it, he changed the access code and programmed the system to shut off the security system and lights, lock the outer doors and stop all but the elevator they were taking up on his command, then shut the elevator off as well.

He was about to program it all to come back on-line in five minutes when he felt the nozzle of Scalphunter's gun press against the back of his head.

"I'm watching everything you do, Cajun. You try to fuck us up in any way and I'll blow your brains into the monitor. Understand?"

"...Oui."

The gun moved away. "Then hurry up."

Remy allowed himself that brief moment when Scalphunter moved the gun to close his eyes.

I so sorry, X-Men. I try t' help you, but I can'. It all up t' you now.

He pushed the enter key and the lights died.

Saints preserve you, mon amis.

Professor Charles Xavier's head snapped up the instant the lights went out.

What in the world...?

He concentrated, reaching out telepathically to his students.

#X-Men, we need to get the power back on-line immediately,# he began.

In the Ready Room, Scalphunter spoke into a communicator.

"Now," he said.

Remy looked up, puzzled. "What?"

#I don't know what caused the power failure,# Xavier continued, #But we must assume-#

Suddenly, he screamed as his powers painfully twisted inside out, then shut off as completely as the lights had.

In the darkened t.v. room, the X-Men hadn't realized the power was out in anything other than the television until Xavier's voice sounded in their minds.

They were listening to his instructions when suddenly every one of them doubled over in agony.

Bishop was one of the few X-Men who kept his feet, along with Logan and Ororo. Through sheer force of will, the big man stayed upright, eyes fighting to adapt to the darkness as he judged who was up, who was down, and where any potential danger could come from. All while he wished he'd brought a larger gun with him, rather than the small pistol he carried.

I've gotten soft, he berated himself. I should never have left my plasma rifle behind,

Only seconds had passed, so most of the X-Men were still on the floor and Bishop was the only one standing who was at the right angle to see a light flash up around the mansion. It faded immediately into a dull shimmer, but he knew exactly what it was. It was used in his time, when an attacking force wanted to make escape impossible.

"Everybody up!" he called, his voice clear but not travelling any further than the room. "The mansion has a force shield around it. We should anticipate an invasionary force to be inside right now."

Logan looked up with a growl. "I can't smell nothin'. My powers are gone."

"Blessed Lady! Mine are as well."

Cyclops took immediate control as Bishop moved to where he could watch the hall outside the door, the other X-Men shifting into defensive positions around the room.

"Is everyone all right? Good. Now, we have to assume all of our powers are gone. We have no contact with Professor Xavier, Bobby or Warren and there is an unidentified number of invaders in the mansion."

"I fear the telephone is quite dead and the quick access tubes to the Danger Room are inoperable," Beast said after checking them.

"Then we can't get below ground to Cerebro. We'll have to fight with what we've got. What weapons do we have?"

"My katana is in my room," Psylocke said.

Storm nodded. "As well, I have several martial arts weapons in my attic."

"And I've got my claws," Wolverine extended them and cursed as blood poured out of the wounds his mutant healing factor normally healed. Quickly, Beast bound them with a few strips of cloth.

Cyclops looked around, silently cursing X-Men policy for not keeping energy and projectile weapons upstairs. They'd become too dependant on their powers.

Bishop cleared his throat. "As well as this gun, I have rifles, plasma guns, lasers and pistols in my quarters."

There were murmurs of relief as Storm looked at him sideways. "I do believe you were told once not to do that."

Bishop's face hardened. "I do what I feel is necessary for security reasons."

From downstairs, there was the sound of gunfire and an explosion. The X-Men froze, murmuring nervously.

"We don't have time for this. We need to get to Bishop's room before we get cut off. Then we can start to split up and try to reach the basement access to the underground."

"But, Cyclops," Psylocke protested. "What about the others?" Obviously, she was thinking about her lover, Archangel, but Scott couldn't afford to sympathize with her.

"We won't be able to help them until we arm ourselves." Cyclops sighed. "We'll have to hope they can hold out until then."

"You hope, Bub. I'll go make sure they do." Wolverine ran out of the room.

"Logan!" Phoenix cried. "You can't go alone! We don't even know what we're up against." She started after him

Cyclops grabbed his wife's arm. "No, Jean. We don't have time to go after him. We have to run for it now." He looked up at them all. "Keep together, stay low and move fast. There's only one way to the men's dorm from here, so we're better off as a group. No sidetrips. We're headed for Bishop's room."

With Storm in the lead and Cyclops guarding the rear, the X-Men set off through the darkened mansion.

In his office on the first floor, Xavier recovered his senses in time to hear the explosion and gunfire. Even closer, there were screams of fear and pain.

His face white, the Professor tried to head for the door, but his hoverchair, designed to obey his telepathic commands, didn't respond. From somewhere in the house, he heard Logan cry out and more explosions.

I have to get out of here, he realized. I'm just a target and a hostage now.

Calmly yet quickly, he began to look for a hiding place.

Scalphunter leaped out of the now-inoperable elevator first, guns blazing as he strafed the hallway. Then he was off, running for the corner before the other Marauders were even off the elevator.

Gambit was right behind him, a larger part of him than he liked to admit exhilerated by what was happening. It was a bit of his soul he'd thought gone a long time ago. The bit that lived solely for the chase, for the thrill of the game, not caring who was involved or who got hurt. It had him on an adrenalin high as he ran, driving him to a place beyond conscience he'd hoped never to reach again. Now he didn't care, He watched for his chance to get away to Rogue, but until then, he was as exhilerated as the Marauders around him, impressed by their courage and their differences in style to the X-Men, his grin huge.

And he hated himself for it.

In the kitchen, Bobby and Warren were as shocked as everyone else when their powers were nullified. Warren was almost knocked to the floor as his great metal wings suddenly became dead weight.

"What's going on?" Bobby asked loudly. "Warren, are you okay?"

"I think so. I- look out!"

They both heard the gunfire, then Scalphunter appeared in the doorway, his gun lifting towards them. Bobby dove for cover, but Warren was too heavy to move.

Suddenly, Archangel's wings spread on their own and hundreds of flechettes fired throughout the room. Bobby went down, hit by three of the paralyzing feathers as Scalphunter leaped out of the way. In the hall, Gambit jerked back as one of the feathers imbedded in the wall next to his head.

Merde! He thought. You playin' for keeps, neh, Warren? Good for you.

Scalphunter, however, was furious. "Damn it, there wasn't supposed to be any resistance at all!"

"How could he fight back?" Harpoon demanded. "I thought Sinister-"

Scalphunter glared at him. "He couldn't control them, I could see that. Damn, we don't have time to waste here. We'll have to come back." He took a grenade, pulled the pin and rolled it into the kitchen. The explosion rocked them all to their teeth and the Marauders whooped. Gambit felt sick.

"Move," Scalphunter ordered. The Marauders started down the hall again, Gambit with them, and as he passed the doorway, he looked in.

The kitchen was in ruins, but in the middle of it, half obscured by smoke, stood Archangel, his wings curved around himself protectively. Iceman lay in a corner, well away from the explosion.

Yes! Exhileration filled the Cajun, along with a cocky surety that the Marauders were already defeated, It was just a matter of time before they were beaten and he was reunited with Rogue. Until then, he could enjoy the game of it, the thrill of the challenge to beat the Marauders. It was a familiar feeling for Remy, one learned from his foster family. One where people were only pawns and there was no real fear of failure for nothing in the game was of true value. Living with the X-Men had gone far towards changing this paradigm, but even now, when his adrenalin ran high, he still lived only for the moment and not the consequences.

The Marauders entered the main foyer, where a wide staircase led up to the darkened balcony that began the second floor. There was no sign of life.

"Split up," Scalphunter ordered. "Vertigo, Harpoon, you check the area to the left on the second floor. Riptide, take the Cajun around the main floor and watch him. The rest of us will head-"

None of them saw or heard Wolverine coming, but Gambit knew someone was there, through his kinethetic sense. Immediately, his training took over and he spun, throwing two charged cards overhand. They caught the berserker just as he launched off the top of the stairs at Scalphunter. Logan bellowed in pain as the explosion blew him back into the shadows of the second floor.

Merde, Remy thought, stunned by what he'd done. You lucky dat was Wolverine, boy! Anyone else be killed by dat! Don' forget what side you on!

The Marauders were just as surprised as he was. They gaped for a moment, then crowded around him, laughing and slapping his back. Vertigo even threw her arms around his neck and kissed him.

Scalphunter's voice snapped them back. "Stop fooling around. We have work to do."

"Oh, allow Mr. LeBeau his moment in the sun." Sinister opened the front door and walked in. "After all, it is due to him that we are here today." He walked right up to the Cajun and Remy had to fight the urge to step back. "You're one of us now, aren't you, Gambit?"

Gambit swallowed. "I am," he assured him.

"TRAITOR!!"

Everyone looked up to see the X-Men sneaking across the top of the stairs to the other wing of the mansion, right under their noses. Except for Bishop. He stood at the very top of the stairs, raging down at Gambit.

"You are the one who betrayed the X-Men!" He fired, the bullet going right through the fleshy part of the Cajun's arm. If he hadn't dodged as fast as he did, it would have pierced his heart and he gasped at how close he'd come to dying.

I t'ink it gonna be a li'l harder to 'xplain dis afterwards dan I t'ought.

"Kill him!" Scalphunter yelled.

Bishop dove out of the way, barely getting to safety before the top of the stairs was destroyed by the Marauders' powers. Several X-Men were cut off, forced to go back the way they'd come and someone screamed in pain, hit by something,

"Hurry!" Scrambler yelled. "We've got 'em on the run now." He raced up the stairs after them.

"Wait, you fool!" Scalphunter yelled, then started giving orders.

Remy barely heard him, confused and suddenly frightened, his arm bloody but still usable. Why didn' de X-Men fight back? Wha's goin' on?

Suddenly, he realized Riptide was pulling on his good arm. "Come on, Cajun. We gotta check the ground floor."

The other Marauders headed up the stairs while Gambit let himself be lead the other way. There was something wrong here, somthing that he couldn't see. Wouldn't see. It was tickling at the back of his mind, saying it had something to do with Bishop, but he shut down, refused to look at it. He'd already lost so much- his wife, his foster family- he couldn't bear the thought of losing those he cared about again. More, he couldn't accept that he was wrong. He hated himself enough; had only learned to like himself again a little because of Rogue's love. He couldn't handle the fear that Bishop was right, that when it came down to it, he was as evil as...

A gunshot sounded from the second floor and the Cajun flinched as if hit again. His arm was wet and painful, but the wound wasn't too serious, though he would need to get it bandaged soon. For the moment, he just kept his other hand clamped over it.

"Come on," Riptide ordered. "Move your butt."

Remy followed him. I will save Rogue, he thought. Ain't nothin' dat can stop me. An' de X-Men'll s'vive too. Dey always s'vive.

Gambit started to grin again as he followed Riptide, fooling himself, as he always did, into believing that he was right, and not making one of the biggest mistakes of his life.

Scrambler raced after the X-Men, ignoring Scalphunter's yells to move with the team. He raged for revenge against them for humiliating him in the past and now that they were powerless, he wouldn't be satisfied until they were all dead. He licked his lips hungrily as he raced around the corner to see Bishop half-staggering down the hall, supporting a wounded Beast. Crowing, he lifted his weapon.

There was a gunshot. Scrambler was surprised for a moment, since he hadn't fired yet. Then he suddenly buckled to his knees, blood and pain pouring from his chest. Gasping in horror, he slumped to his side, the last thing he saw the X-Men escaping from him.

Then he died.

Storm stepped back into the room and leaned heavily against the wall as Bishop and Beast moved past her to join Phoenix, Psylocke and Wolverine. The gun she held felt both warm and heavy. Too heavy.

Dear Goddess, she thought. I killed him! And Remy... Oh, Bright Lady, how could he have betrayed us?

Scalphunter peered around the corner at the body lying in the hallway and cursed.

"Scrambler's dead," he told his team. "The X-Men are holed up in one of the rooms and they have at least one weapon."

Arclight was furious. "Why don't I just shake the whole damn house down around them?"

Scalphunter gave her a look of pure disgust. "This house? Its walls are all reinforced and the supports reach five hundred feet into the bedrock. Not even you could collapse it. Why do you think we're attacking this way in the first place?"

Her face hardened, but he ignored her. She would obey. "No, we're going to have to do this carefully," he told them all. "One step at a time."

Rogue sat alone in her cage, staring at the floor until the lab door opened and the black woman who'd helped Sinister earlier walked in. Rogue stood.

"Threnody," she whispered. "Y'all have ta help me."

Threnody looked at her, then started typing into a computer.

"Threnody!" Rogue called more loudly. "Yah can't just leave me in here. Ya helped us once, when ya destroyed Sinister's lab for us. Why won't ya help me now?"

The young mutant shrugged. "I have no desire to disobey Sinister."

"But why? Ah thought we were friends."

Threnody walked up to the cage. "I am not your friend."

Rogue stared at her in confusion. She didn't know Threnody very well, but this was wildly out of character for her. Suddenly, she realized the truth.

"Y'all ain't Threnody. Y'all are just a clone a her."

The copy of Threnody didn't bother to answer her. She just finished her work and left.

Oh, sugah, Rogue thought once she was alone. Ya were so sure that Sinister wouldn't know ya helped us. Ah guess ya were wrong.

Frustrated, the young woman grabbed the bars and trued to pull them apart. No luck. The adamantium they were laced with was the strongest metal in the universe. Still, she tried her best, pulling until her arms were aching and her back was sore. Leaning against the bars, she let her cheek rest on them.

There was a tink of metal on metal. Puzzled, Rogue reached up and her hand came down with the bobby pin Bishop gave her.

Oh, mah, oh yes! Exstatic, she kissed the pin. Bishop, y'all jus' saved th' day, sugah!

She crossed to the door and paused, eyes closed and the pin clutched to her breast.

Remy, honey, ah know ya can't hear me. Her eyes filled with tears at the thought that he'd never hear her thoughts again. But ah hope enough a ya soul rubbed off in me while ya was here, 'cause ah need ya skill somethin' awful.

Her eyes still closed, she took a few deep breaths, steadying her mind and body with a technique Wolverine had taught her. Then she started to bend the pin into a new shape before bringing it down to the cage's lock.

Cautiously, Vertigo and Harpoon moved through the woman's dorm wing of the X-Mansion, Scrambler's death on their minds while they searched for stragglers. It was quiet, except for the vibrations through the floor as Arclight focused her powers in the other wing.

"This is not going the way I imagined it," Vertigo complained.

"Shut up," Harpoon ordered. "We'll adapt." They exited the bedroom they'd been checking and came to the last door at the end of the hall.

"Who are you to tell me to shut up?!"

Harpoon glared at her. "You want me to call Scalphunter and get him to do it for me?"

Vertigo fell silent and Harpoon carefully opened the door, one hand clutching a steel harpoon, ready to turn it to energy with a power similar to Gambit's. Narrow stairs led upward.

"This must be the attic," Harpoon whispered and led the way up.

Above was Storm's bedroom, a high ceilinged room filled with plants and a huge, open skylight she used most often to get outside.

Above the lip of that skylight, pressed flat to the roof to stay below the level of the forcefield, Cannonball waited. He was afraid, certainly, but he controlled it. Young as he was, he knew the dangers of panicking.

He heard the sound of feet on the stairs and suddenly the Marauders were in the room, eyes darting about nervously. Harpoon stepped towards the closet and Vertigo moved under the skylight, towards the bed.

Cannonball rolled the statue he'd brought up with him over the edge of the skylight.

Harpoon spun as Vertigo fell. "What the-?" He saw the boy. "You!" His harpoon began to glow.

Suddenly, the closet door banged open and Cyclops knocked the harpoon away with one of Storm's bo staffs.

"Surrender!" He yelled. "You're outnumbered!"

Harpoon laughed. "To you?"

Desperately, Cannonball struggled to get down into the attic as the two men fought. Vertigo, he noted, was beginning to move as he dropped down beside her.

"Ah'm right sorry ta hit a lady, ma'am," he apologized to her as he punched her in the jaw. She went limp.

Cyclops' cry jerked Cannonball up and his face paled. Harpoon had gotten the X-Man trapped in a corner and thrust his harpoon through his side. Now he pulled it out and began to transmute it to energy slowly. Cyclops sat down hard, blood covering him from his chest to his knees on the left side.

"You're stupid," he sneered. "How many swords you got it here, three? And you attack me with a stick. You don't have the guts to k-"

His final word turned into a gurgle as Cannonball plunged one of those swords through his back.

Cyclops stared at the dead Marauder sadly while Cannonball knelt beside him.

"You're bleeding, sir."

"You shouldn't have killed him, Sam. The X-Men aren't murderers. Not for any reason." He groaned and Cannonball ran for the bed to get sheets for bandages.

The floors and walls were shaking under Arclight's power while the cracks around the door were too bright to look at, thanks to Prism.

Bishop knelt on the floor, his teeth banging together in his head as the furniture danced across the room. Everything on the walls and shelves had fallen, bringing the shelves with them, and the X-Men struggled to keep themselves from being thrown about themselves.

Bishop was enraged. The X-Men were pinned down, six of their number were missing and two wounded, and they had nowhere to retreat to. He blamed himself. He'd known the X-Men would be betrayed and murdered by one of their own, but he hadn't been able to convince them of it. He'd suspected Gambit, as the only X-Man to survive to his time, yet he hadn't killed him. He'd listened to the X-Men's philosophy about not killing, and his own long buried feeling for the man, and now it was going to cost them their lives. They couldn't even go after the Marauders directly. They had too good a shot down the hallway. They could only wait for the Marauders to come to them, and he knew what would happen then. The X-Men would die again.

"S-S-St-to-r-mm," Jean called, her voice vibrating so that she was almost incoherent. She swallowed and tried again.

"Storm, the Marauders are trying to keep us off balance, but they must be as disoriented as we are. I can use the cover to get to the elevator at the end of the hall. If I get into the shaft, I can climb down to the Communications room and call for help."

"No!" Bishop yelled. "This is what happened before! If you go down there, you'll make the message I find in the future, but you won't save yourself!"

A series of explosions sounded faintly from somewhere downstairs as Storm stared at him, her blue eyes calm.

"Very well, Bishop," She said at last. "We shall have to take the fight to them directly."

"Way- way t' go, darlin'," Wolverine coughed from the corner.

Storm and Bishop crawled across the shaking floor to the wounded X-Man's side. Beast crouched beside him, his blue fur matted with blood but his eyes clear.

"He is gravely wounded," the doctor told them. "I fear that there is little I can do for him here. Without his mutant healing factor, he needs a proper medical facility."

Wolverine snorted. "Cajun caught me by surprise. I'll be fine."

"I wonder how Gambit managed to receive a duplicate of his former body," Beast thought aloud. "Most probably, it is due to Sinister and his experiments in cloning. Possibly, this is not the Gambit we know."

Bishop's eyes darkened. "I was raised by the man," he told them. "It's him,"

The shaking stopped as they heard Sinister laughing, then a power discharge followed by a scream.

"Believe me," Bishop grated. "He's a cold, heartless, son of a bitch and our enemy as much as Sinister and the Marauders are, and we need to take him down."

Riptide searched Xavier's office while the ceiling vibrated with Arclight's power, throwing everything to the floor in a search that destroyed a lot, but did very little in its quest for hidden X-Men.

Gambit let him. He had his trenchcoat off and was trying to bind his arm using his free hand and his teeth. He glanced sideways at Riptide.

"Don' suppose I could get y' t' help me wit' dis, non?"

Riptide tipped a file cabinet over. "Don't bug me, Cajun. I'm busy."

"Yeah, right. Like dere be a whole lotta X-Men under dat cabinet." He finished tying the makeshift bandage and pulled his coat back on. Glancing out the window, he noticed a strange shimmer in the darkness. "What de hell is dat?!"

Riptide looked, then grinned maliciously. "Didn't Scalphunter tell you about the shield we've got up? Keeps everyone from sneaking off when they're not supposed to."

Gambit stared out the window, his eyes wide with horror.

Oh, Saints... Rogue...

Behind him, he heard Riptide open the closet door. "Well, well, well, what do we have here?"

Slowly, Remy turned to see Xavier lying under a pile of winter coats in the closet, Riptide gloating over him.

"Please," Xavier said calmly. "This is not necessary."

"Hah! Go ahead and beg. Not so great without your powers, are you?"

Without your powers... Oh... no...

Suddenly, Gambit hurled himself at Riptide with an inarticulate cry of rage and grief. The Marauder saw him coming and started to spin, hurling dozens of organic shuriken at him. Gambit dove and rolled to come back up and throw his own charged cards. Riptide evaded and charged, trying to catch Gambit in the lethal whirlwind surrounding his lower body. The Cajun backpeddled and ran to put the desk between them.

Riptide giggled. "Looks like Sinister was right about you. He said you'd try to play both sides of the street."

Remy's face tightened as he dodged more shuriken. Xavier could hear all of this, and Riptide was ruining any chance he had of convincing him that he wasn't a traitor.

"I an X-Man! He yelled, aware as he said it how weak it sounded.

Riptide's giggle turned into a laugh. "You're a Marauder. And it's not like this is the first time you've worked for Sinister." He sent a storm of stars after the Cajun. "You were his long before the X-Men found you."

"Liar!" Gambit scattered cards throughout the room and leapt at the briefly stunned Marauder. His hand began to glow as he punched the clone and the energy he released magnified the force of his blow. Riptide fell.

Gambit went down on his knees beside him, his shoulder throbbing and his hand painfully stiff. He always suffered when he released his power that way.

He felt worse inside. There was no way to save Rogue now, no way to keep the X-Men from being killed, and it was all his fault. Bishop's words echoed through his mind.

You are the one who betrayed the X-Men!

Now he knew what voice had been tickling at the back of his mind. It'd been his conscience, telling him he was fast digging his own way to Hell. Now he saw what he was doing, but the flames were already around him.

Xavier dragged himself out of the closet to where Gambit knelt, his face buried in his hands.

"Gambit, why have you done this?"

The words were so compassionate. Gambit glared at him. He hated himself enough already, was overwhelmed by his guilt. The last thing he could deal with was Xavier's self-righteousness, or even his understanding.

"I did it 'cause I an asshole, okay?! I brought de Marauders here, an' I let dem in. Unnerstan'?"

Xavier's face was expressionless. "Why, Remy?"

The Cajun barely managed to keep the pain inside of him from coming out in tears. Instead, he maintained the anger.

"'Cause Sinister got Rogue an' I knew I could jus' warn you tel'pathic'ly, but I not trust y 'nough. Now y' all trapped an' y' don' have y' powers, so Rogue be dead."

Xavier put a hand on his good shoulder. "I can understand your reasons..."

He jerked his arm away, jarring his bad shoulder and digging the homing device into his wrist. He yanked it off and threw it against the wall.

"I don' wan' your un'erstanding! I don' wan' anyt'ing from you!" He lurched to his feet.

"Where are you going?"

"Sinister screw my life up one time too many. Now he take Rogue from me. I gonna make him pay for dat, so don' t'ink I do dis for you. It for her."

Remy ran for the door, knowing his words would only dig him in further, but unable to open himself up any. Part of him wanted to bow down before Xavier as a man he respected and beg his forgiveness, but he couldn't do it. The walls he'd put up around himself were too thick. Now he ran for the stairs, his mind a mess, not sure if he was challenging Sinister to avenge a woman not yet dead, to rescue the X-Men he still wanted to be a part of, or to save his own damned soul. Perhaps it was all three. Or perhaps it was none and he only sought release to follow Rogue.

Remy scrambled up the shaking stairs to the second floor. It teed into a passageway at the top and he could see Scalphunter to the right, ordering Arclight to keep up her vibrations to disorient the X-Men, but the Cajun's attention was focused solely on Sinister.

The tall Mutant was standing behind the Marauders, arms crossed, watching their efforts calmly. Gambit's teeth ground together. Sinister's back was to him, but that wasn't good enough. He wanted him to face him, to see his eyes before he died.

"Sinister."

Sinister turned and smiled. "So, the prodigal son decides to return to assert his loyalties to his friends and... family. To join with his brothers and forget his purported responsibilities to the woman he professes to love."

"Don' you hurt her!" Gambit yelled and some of the Marauders turned to look at him.

"It is already done."

"NOOO!" All of Remy's grief poured out of him into the scream and the card he threw.

The card bounced off Sinister's chest and fell to the floor.

Sinister started to chuckle as Arclight stopped pounding on the floor. The laugh echoed out in the sudden silence, and to the Cajun it sounded like the boom of the gates of Hell closing behind him.

No, oh no, no, no,,,

"Foolish child," Sinister said. "The armband you threw away was all that allowed you to use your powers. It is not a mistake you will be allowed to correct."

He raised his arms and fired a bolt of energy at the Cajun. Without his agility and kinethetic sense, and with his broken soul weighing in him like lead, Remy couldn't avoid it. He screamed as the blast hit him in the chest. Burned through to his lungs, Gambit was thrown back and felt himself go over the banister that stood next to the stairs.

...rogue...

The cold stone floor of the foyer waited for him far below.

A trio of bats was hunting insects when a green thunderbolt streaked through their formation, sending then flapping in confusion in all directions.

Rogue didn't notice. Her eyes were pushed almost closed by the wind and only her superstrength was letting her breath under the pressures she was generating. A sonic boom sounded behind her and she slowed a bit with a curse, not wanting anyone to hear her coming, but regretting the loss of speed.

When ah get there, ah am goin' ta rip the heads offa ev'ry Marauder ah can get mah hands on. Then ah'm gonna pound Sinister inta th' ground. Then ah'm gonna find Remy and hug him stupid. she saw the lights of Salem Centre below. Then ah'm gonna pound him inta the ground too.

It'd taken her a long time to pick the lock on the door. Threnody's clone tried to stop her, but when up against a woman strong enough to juggle tanks, she hadn't stood a chance. Rogue left her half embedded in a wall and flew out through the roof. After asking where she was from a very surprised motorist, she headed for home at full speed.

Rogue's eyes narrowed. The X-Mansion was up ahead, but she saw no lights, just a strange shimmer. Abruptly, she saw a light flash on the second floor and faintly heard someone scream. She didn't know who'd been hit, but her face paled and she dove towards the house.

It was like hitting an adamantium wall. Just above the house, Rogue slammed into an invisible shield, the force of her impact bouncing her off and into the ground.

"Hey, I wasn't expecting you here. Guess I'll have to beat you like I did last time."

Dizzily, Rogue looked up to see Blockbuster coming towards her. There was some sort of machine behind him, its dish pointed at the house. It was humming.

That mus' be what's makin' that shield ah hit.

Rogue climbed to her feet as Blockbuster cracked his knuckles. "Poor little girl," he clucked mockingly.

Rogue's eyes narrowed. Immediately, she was airborne and on him. Grabbing his arm, she slammed him to the ground.

"Let me make this clear!" She yelled. She spun and threw him to the ground again. "Ah am th' fastest X-Man. Ah am th' strongest." She flew up, dragging the unconscious, bleeding Marauder with her. "Ah am not a li'l girl! Ah don' need ta be protected or rescued!" Spinning in place, she whipped the man around with her and finally threw him out over the bay. "So there," she added grumpily.

There was automatic gunfire in the mansion as Rogue landed beside the machine. Nothing about it made any sense to her, so she began ripping vast pieces of it off and crushed the remains into nothingness.

"What is going on out there?" Psylocke fumed. "Who screamed?"

"If we're lucky, it was one of them," Bishop replied. "But it may be the chance we're looking for." He ran for the door, barely faster than Storm as she tried to stop him.

Bishop went through the door in a dive, weapon up and firing as he did so. At the other end of the hall, Arclight's head exploded into paste as Scalphunter fired back. Two twin beams slammed into the X-Man, knocking him down.

He had an instant to hope that his sacrifice had reduced the Marauders' numbers enough for the X-Men to defeat them. Then Bishop realized he felt no pain. Instead, there was a familiar itch as his body absorbed the energy of the blast and prepared to release it.

"YES!" He fired the energy back, forcing Scalphunter to retreat around the corner.

Prism looked at the burn mark Bishop's blast had left in the wall.

"Oh, fuck," he said succinctly.

Scalphunter ignored him. He was yelling into his communicator. "Marauders, regroup! Vertigo? Harpoon? Riptide? Goddamn it!" He slammed it down and looked at Sinister. "You said your machine was infallible!"

"It is." Sinister frowned in consideration. "Someone outside must have interfered with it."

"Great. Worry about it later, because we're about to have a dozen X-Men come right down our throats."

In Bishop's room, Wolverine's eyes opened with a snap. He sat up, his wounds already closing. Psylocke raised her fist and the glow of a psychic dagger appeared while thunder crashed outside. Phoenix levitated into the air.

Wolverine smiled coldly. "Guess it's our turn now, eh?"

Rogue flew through the front doors, the steel tearing around her. Her rage, only partially sated by her destruction of the machine that shielded the mansion, turned to sick horror when she saw who was lying on the floor below the second floor landing.

"...Remy..."

Delicately, she landed next to him, her eyes wide. He wasn't moving, lying on his back with his left arm obviously broken and terrible burns on his chest. Blood trickled from his nose and mouth. Trembling, Rogue put a hand to his throat. He didn't have a pulse.

Panic started to set in, but she forced it back down.Ah am not gonna freak. Ah have ta concentrate on gettin' him breathin' again. Ignore th' arm an' burns. They c'n wait 'til later. The sounds of battle came from the second floor. "Sounds lahk th' X-Men are doin' their level best ta send th' Marauders ta Hell. Can't 'spect any a them ta come here an' help me. Ah have ta do his breathin' for him mahself." Gingerly, she tilted his head back to clear his air passages and opened his mouth.

"Hope ya liked bein' in me, sugah," she whispered as she bent over him. "'Cause it looks like y'all are right on ya way back."

She took a deep breath, put her mouth over Remy's, careful to make a tight seal, and exhaled. Air rushed into his damaged lungs, but nothing came back to her. Not a thought, memory, or flicker of his powers.

Oh, Remy, don't be dead. Please.

Stubbornly, she blew into him a second time and a third, then put her palms on his burned, bloody chest and pushed down rhythmically,

Tears in her eyes but her face as hard as stone, Rogue filled the Cajun's lungs with her own breath and pumped blood through his heart, keeping him alive while she waited for help to find them.

Lightning crashed down the hallway, along with Bishop's blasts. Wolverine's howl sounded over it all.

Deafened and half-blinded, the two remaining Marauders tried to retreat, but three telepaths were attacking their minds. Finally, Prism whimpered and rolled into a ball, retreating into himself. Scalphunter's will was stronger than his, however, and he kept the telepaths out of his mind. Barely.

He was running low on ammo, though. The X-Men couldn't come down the hall without being shot, but he couldn't hold them off long, and he wouldn't be able to hold a determined Wolverine off at all.

"We have to retreat," he told Sinister.

Sinister nodded. "Indeed we shall. I will have to review my approach. Another time, X-Men." He turned to go.

"I don't think so."

Both Scalphunter and Sinister looked up to see Cyclops standing beyond the stairs, clutching his bloody side. Cannonball stood beside him.

"This is the last time you'll ever see us," he coughed.

Scalphunter raised his gun as Cyclops' optic beams lanced into Sinister, but Cannonball rocketted at the sniper, his mutant powers making him invulnerable while he flew.

"Ah think ya need ta try again," he laughed.

The Marauder snarled and grabbed a flash grenade. Cannonball wouldn't be able to hit him if he couldn't see.

Then he heard the growling.

Rogue threw herself protectively over Gambit when Scalphunter and Wolverine landed only a meter from them and closed her eyes as his claws came down with a sickening thunk. A thick pool of blood began to creep towards her.

An instant later, Sinister fell down the stairs, followed by an injured Cyclops and Bishop. Wolverine snarled and leapt over her towards him as Sinister ran awkwardly for the door. Storm soared past overhead.

"Ah'l raht, X-Men!" She yelled. "Run that skunk inta th' ground! Wahoo!"

"...rogue..."

Rogue looked down. "Remy?" she whispered.

Gambit stared up at her, his face pale and his eyes filled with a combination of shock, pain, and relief. He was struggling to breathe, his voice hoarse and raspy.

"...you're alive... alive... t'ought he... killed you..."

She cupped his cheek with her gloved hand. "Don't try ta talk, sugah. Ah'll get Beast."

Gambit refused to be silent. "...he trick... me 'gain, chere... used... me..." He swallowed heavily and coughed. "...made... Bishop... right... Bishop... don'..."

A shadow fell across them and Rogue looked up to see Bishop leveling a gun at Remy's head.

"Bishop, no!" She grabbed the gun and crushed it. "Are ya crazy?!"

The big man looked down at Gambit hatefully and his voice shook with disgust.

"He betrayed us, Rogue. He works for Sinister! It's because of him that the future I came from was the hell it was!"

"He was tryin' ta save me! Sinister was gonna kill us both!"

Bishop took a step towards her, his fists clenched and glowing. "Then he should have died, rather than sacrifice others!"

Immediately, Rogue spun to face him directly, bent in a defensive crouch. "You wan' him, Bishop, ya gotta go through me."

Bishop looked as though he would take her on when Storm landed between them.

"Stop it, you two! We do not have time for recriminations." She knelt beside Gambit, who Beast was now giving whatever medical attention he could. Rogue dropped down beside her. Bishop stepped back and crossed his arms, watching with an indeciferable expression on his face.

"Henry," Storm asked. "How bad is it?"

Beast's expression was very serious when he answered. "Extrememly bad. It is an unequevocial miracle that he is still breathing, considering the extensive damage to his lungs." Professor Xavier floated over in his chair to watch. "He needs to be taken to a medical facility immediately."

"We need to get him to the medical bay below ground," Xavier said.

Storm nodded and bent over the dying Cajun, looking much calmer then Rogue felt. She wanted to punch something, or scream until it all went away.

"Remy," Storm called softly. "It is Ororo. Can you hear me?"

Slowly, Gambit's eyes opened and Rogue swallowed at the emptiness growing in them.

"...s-stormy... oui..."

The faintest hint of a smile ghosted on Storm's lips. "I have told you not to call me that. Remy, the access code to Cerebro has been changed."

"...code...?..."

"Yes," she responded patiently. "The code to the computer. Jean has gone down there, but she cannot get access. We cannot turn on anything without the code. Do you understand?"

Remy's eyes closed for a long time and Rogue was afraid for one terrible instant that they'd lost him.

Storm stroked his cheek. "Remy?"

"...yes..."

"Remy, tell me the code."

His eyes opened again, wet with tears. His voice was so weak, Rogue could barely hear the one word he spoke.

"...regret..."

Rogue stared out the window at the rain, not sure if it was due to Storm, but glad it was there anyway. It matched her mood.

Professor Xavier, Storm, Phoenix, Bishop, Iceman, Cannonball, Wolverine, Psylocke and Beast were ranged around the room behind her, and she turned from the window to face them.

"Ah think this sucks!" She cried. "Y'all have no right ta go castin' judg'ments on Remy without him bein' here ta defend himself."

Bishop immediately began to bristle. "I think we've already waited too long."

"Y'all think too much!" She jabbed her finger at him. "It's only been a week. Remy's barely been taken off th' critical list. He needs more time ta heal."

"He needs to be punished!"

"Why him?" She retorted. "Why Remy? It was Sinister who started all this, or have ya forgotten? Gambit's a victim same as th' rest o us!" Her eyes narrowed in consideration. "What did Remy do to y'all in ya own time ta make ya so willin' ta hate him in this one?"

"My ties to the Witness have nothing to do with this."

"Really? Ah'm starting ta think they have more t' do than ya wanna admit. Y'all have had a problem with Remy since th' first time ya laid eyes on him. Y'all don' jus' hate him 'cause he was th' only one a us ta survive ta your time. Ya may have thought that made him th' traitor, but ah could see ya hated him already. Why?"

"Rogue! Bishop!" Xavier called before things could escalate further. They both stepped back from one another.

"Now," the telepath continued. "We are having this meeting today because it has become obvious that this matter needs to be resolved right away, before tensions lead to outright violence. But first, before voting, we must decide what we're voting on. What are we going to do about Gambit?"

"Execution," Bishop said immediately.

"No," Xavier said before Rogue could lose her temper again. "That is not an option. Nor can we turn him over to the police without exposing the X-Men."

Storm cleared her throat. "I hope you are not suggesting that we keep him confined here, like we tried with Sabretooth."

Wolverine growled at the sound of that name.

Xavier smiled. "There isn't a cell here that would hold him, which is another reason not to turn him over to the authorities." His smile faded. "That leaves banishment."

Everyone fell silent. In all its history, no one had ever been thrown off the X-Men before. Of course, no one had ever done anything like Remy before either. Xavier let the silence and the implications sink in for almost a minute before he spoke again.

"Before I call for votes, I want to say one thing, I will not vote against Remy. He betrayed us to Sinister, yes, but it was only one level of treachery. He was still an X-Man in his heart and he tried to stop what he started. Another thing to consider is the fact that Gambit has nowhere to go. He was a thief before he joined us. Do we want to risk condemning him back to a life of crime? Throw him out and he may become our enemy."

"I say he already is," Bishop snapped. "The Marauders almost succeeded in killing you all because of him." He looked away. "I only wish I'd been of more help in preventing it."

Jean actually laughed at that. "Bishop, you made all the difference in the world." Everyone looked at her. "Look at the facts. We don't have a weapons locker above ground, but you kept one in your room. So when the Marauders attacked, we were able to hold them off long enough for Rogue to escape her prison and destroy the nullifier and shield. Which is something she wouldn't have been able to do without the pin you gave her. Also, you created just enough doubt in Gambit's mind about what he was doing that he turned back to our side in time to save Charles. It's like that Chaos Theory, where a butterfly flapping its wings in Tokyo makes it rain in New York, because the tiny change it makes build up into something bigger." She put her hands on his shoulders. "You saved us all, Bishop."

Bishop was speechless and sat down unsteadily, obviously stunned by the reality he'd just heard.

Xavier chuckled. "She's right, Bishop, and it'll take a long time for us to thank you properly."

"You don't have to," Bishop said weakly.

"Yes, we do, but now is obviously not a good time. Storm, your vote?"

Blue cat eyes met Xavier's proudly. "I brought Remy into the X-Men. I do not wish to be the one to send him out. Irregardless of his actions, he is still my friend. I vote no." She looked at Wolverine. "Logan?"

The oldest X-Man there, Wolverine lounged in his chair and took a long sip of his beer before answering. "Boy turned on us and caused a serious amount o' hurtin'. But he realized his mistake and tried t' fix it. Don't matter that he failed. Tryin's what's important. I say that makes him an X-Man still." He nodded at Rogue. "Guess your answer's obvious, eh, darlin'?"

Rogue lifted her chin proudly, bouyed by the support Remy had received so far. "Ah love him, Logan. Doesn't matter what he's done. Ah will stand by him."

"I'd think less a you if you didn't, darlin'. Jeannie?"

Phoenix sighed. "He's been through enough guilt already. He doesn't need our rejection on top of that as well. Mark me as no." Rogue started to smile.

Then Psylocke shook her head. "I can sense the same things in him that you do, but I'm not so willing to forgive. I want him out of the X-Men before he does any more damage."

Rogue felt a chill in her at the vehemence in her voice. Except for Bishop, whom she'd expected, Psylocke was the first one to vote against Remy. She began to chew her lip and looked hopefully at Iceman.

He refused to look back at her, instead staring at the floor. "I've never liked Gambit," he admitted.

"Bobby-"

Xavier lifted his hand. "No, Rogue. Everyone is allowed their vote without interruption. Continue, please."

Iceman took a deep breath. "I say get rid of him."

"Ah agree with Iceman," Cannonball added.

Rogue stared at Iceman, feeling horribly betrayed, but still he looked anywhere but at her.

"The question before us," Beast put in, "is the age old one as to whether or not the end justifies the means. Remy's betrayal was an attempt to save Rogue, whereupon he based his decisions upon an overinflated opinion of our own abilities. Therefore, it may be argued that on one level, we failed him as much as he did us. Also-" He saw Xavier's look. "Keep him," he said shortly.

Suddenly, he grinned at Rogue mischeviously. "Besides, I have been studying his DNA and upon comparing it to your own, have discovered a potential and previously unknown application of your powers. But I digress, as per ususal, and so turn the floor back to the good professor."

"Thank you," Xavier said dryly. "So, as of right now, it's six votes for Gambit remaining in the X-Men and four for him leaving. Only Cyclops and Archangel are left to vote. Storm, could you go ask them?"

"Of course, Professor." She rose and left.

Rogue curled up in her chair and watched her go. She wanted to go along, but she was afraid to. Remy needed only one more vote in his favour, but if it was a split decision...

Sugah, she thought. Ah love ya more than anythin', but ah think ya may be about ta tear th' X-Men apart.

Regally, Storm went downstairs to the infirmary. There was an operating theatre and a machine that looked like a large aquarium, but was actually a Sh'iar healing device. The X-Men had only managed to convert one to human use, and until two nights ago, Remy had been in it.

That was another source of tension amongst the X-Men. Both Cyclops and Archangel were hurt in the battle, but Gambit was the one who was put in the tank. The fact that he would have died without it was often overlooked in the intensity of the emotions flying around.

Storm sighed as she crossed the infirmary to look in one of the small recovery rooms. The lights were out, so she could see little more than the silhouette of the sleeping Cajun.

You are blessed just to be alive, she thought towards him. The Beast hadn't been able to save his lungs and instead transplanted the lungs from his original body that Sinister had in his lab. It was another example of X-Men coincidences. She looked at the heavy leather restraints keeping him tied to the bed and sighed again.

"Sleep well, Remy," she whispered to him. "Not everyone here is against you."

Leaving the door open, she walked into the next room. Here, the lights were on and the two inhabitants were both awake.

"Hello, Storm," Cyclops said, sitting up stiffly. "Has everyone voted?"

She nodded. "Yes. I need to know how you both feel. Shall Remy remain with the X-Men, or be banished?"

Cyclops smiled faintly. "I think I can guess your vote." He looked at his roommate. "Warren?"

Archangel shifted uncomfortably in his bed. His legs were burned when Scalphunter's grenade exploded and the healing skin itched horribly. Cyclops was in the room with him partially to keep him from scratching himself.

"I say throw him out on his ass," Archangel said.

Cyclops raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure about that?"

The winged X-Man nodded. "Yes. That Cajun traitor stabbed us in the back once. I don't want to give him the chance to do it again."

Storm tried to hide her disappointment. Now almost half of the X-Men had voted against Gambit. They were unwilling to forgive, in spite of Xavier's teachings, and it saddened her to see them turn on one of their own. It wasn't the first time an X-Men had turned on them either. Cyclops had been possessed by alien creatures called the Brood and she'd once been subverted by a vampire, but they'd both fought back and saved the X-Men. Remy tried to, but he'd failed and that seemed to make all the difference. There'd been arguments that Remy walked into it of his own free will, but how much free will could a man have, she wondered, when the woman he loved was a prisoner?

She became aware that Cyclops was looking at her and gave herself a mental shake.

"Your vote, Cyclops?"

He sighed, much as she had earlier. "It's a hard decision, Storm. Gambit let Sinister in in an attempt to save Rogue. And when he realized he couldn't do it anymore, he did his best to stop the Marauders. I can understand that. If it were me and Jean was a prisoner, I don't know that I wouldn't have acted the same way."

He sat up straighter, wincing as the stitches in his side were pulled. "The problem is, Storm, he could have warned us they were coming. He could have contacted the Professor, Jean, or Psylocke at any time once he entered the grounds."

"But our powers were nullified."

He pointed a finger at her. "He didn't know that. That's not the point. He didn't trust us and now the trust of most of the team for him is broken. We can't be a team when one member refuses to be anything other than an outsider. I hate to say it, but I think he should leave, for the good of everyone."

Storm felt her heart sink at Cyclops' words. She could understand why Remy didn't trust completely; thieves were backstabbed too often for any of them to want to take that step. It had been years before she could and Remy had been trying. But there'd always been antagonism towards him for his past, and no man could dare to trust too much in a team environment where he'd never really been considered to be a part of the team.

She tried to express this to Cyclops. "We have not made it easy for Remy. Trust must be earned. If he did not feel he could trust us, then the fault for that is ours."

"That's not fair, Storm. We didn't force Gambit to do what he did. He made that choice on his own. But when it came right down to it, Gambit had more faith in Mister Sinister than the X-Men. That breaks any ties to us he had and this place won't feel like home again until he's gone." They were both silent for a long minute. "How did the vote go?" Cyclops asked at last.

"Six for, six against," she answered calmly. "We are stalemated."

Cyclops closed his eyes. "Damn. I was afraid this would happen. We need another X-Man to break the tie."

"And whom would you propose we get?"

"I don't know yet, but it better be done soon, or this will tear the team apart."

In the darkened room next door, Gambit lay awake, listening to the echoes of Storm and Cyclops as they talked.

He still felt fuzzy from the drugs Beast had been giving him, and the dozens of blood tests he'd run, and his nose itched terribly, but he couldn't scratch it. His left arm was in a cast and sling and his right was strapped down, along with the rest of him.

You really fuck it up bad dis time, stupid, he thought. You take ev'ry good t'ing dat been done for you an' turn it t' dog shit. He listened to Storm and Cyclops argue, then her leaving. She didn't look in on him. Oh, Stormy, I so sorry. I didn' mean fo' dis t' happen. Ain' never gonna forgive me f' what I almos' do t' you.

His eyes opened and he stared up at the darkened ceiling above him. He felt horrible inside, the pain of his wounds almost negligable next to it. I ruin ev't'ing I touch. Still wreckin' t'ings for de X-Men too. He felt a dampness on his cheeks he'd never have allowed if there'd been anyone there to see him. Won' be de cause of anyt'ing good gettin' busted up again. Dat at least I c'n do.

Slowly, labouriously, he began to work his way out of his bonds. They were fairly simple. Beast obviously hadn't expected someone who was both drugged and injured to be able to jimmy the locks. Still, it took the Cajun almost five minutes to free himself, an impossibly long time for him.

Once free, Remy stood and staggered in search of clothing, then paper and a pen.

Bishop sat on a small hillock overlooking the main gates to the estate. It'd finally stopped raining and was turning into a clear night. Bishop barely noticed that though. The blind hate and rage he'd felt before were cooling in the clean air and he was lost in his own thoughts, all churned up by Rogue's accusations.

The X-Men were safe, and the future he'd come from averted. There would be no human/mutant war, no XSE, no scrabbling in the ruins for food with his sister. No Witness to take in the two orphans, and feed, bathe and educate them. Gambit hadn't been much of a father; a bitter, cold, corrupt man almost a century old, but he'd been the only one other than his sister Shard to ever feel anything for Bishop. He'd also been the one to get Bishop into the XSE. He sighed as he remembered he'd never said thank you to him for that. There'd been a lot of things he'd never said.

Bishop sighed again. Now there would be no Witness, no comfort and stories and encouragement for a lost, frightened boy. Which left Bishop where? How could he exist if his future was changed so much that there was no need or way for him to go back in time? Would he even be born? Or was this actually a parallel past and the future he came from was still there, filled with Emplates and the XSE and a man who'd been his family, but whom he hadn't had a civil word with for over ten years?

Slowly, Bishop tried to think past his hate. He knew from Rogue what had happened with Sinister, how Gambit had gambled to save her and lost. Was that was what had happened to cause his world? Remy LeBeau tried to save his lover by risking his team, but failed. And without Bishop, Rogue couldn't escape from her cage to destroy the Marauders' power nullifier. Was that where the Witness' bitterness came from, the self-loathing that eventually drove him mad and Bishop away from him?

When Bishop first learned of the existence of the traitor, he swore he would see him punished. The idea of him getting away with it had churned in him like an acid. But the Witness hadn't gotten away with it, he realized. He'd lost his lover, his teammates, his world and eventually his mind. Bishop still remembered the useless years he'd spent trying to save his surrogate father's sanity. He'd seen first hand how deep the old man's unspoken pain went, how it had affected him watching it consume him, and now he couldn't help but wonder if that kind of punishment was too severe, even for what Gambit had done.

There was a flicker of movement down by the gate and Bishop became instantly alert. Gun ready, he crept closer and his eyes widened as he saw the incarnation of a man he'd never expected to meet in this life again.

The Witness' long hair was grey, his face lined and back bowed. There was a duffle bag by his feet and he was struggling one-handed to get the lock open. Bishop blinked and it was Gambit. His reddish brown hair was silvered by moonlight, the lines on his face the result of exhaustion. His back was bowed by the weight of his cast and injuries, not by age. He was at least ten years younger than Bishop, but for a moment, he had looked so much older.

Bishop watched Gambit fight with the lock, unsure. LeBeau hadn't meant to hurt or betray the X-Men. It'd been a stupid mistake, and he wasn't even the real culprit. Sinister was. Rogue was right about that at least, and Bishop had lost sight of it. Gambit was a victim too, one who suffered even more than the others because he'd been forced to live with his guilt. Bishop's eyes narrowed as he fought with the concept. It was hard. He'd been raised to hate those responsible for the deaths of the X-Men, taught to by the Witness himself.

Bishop closed his eyes and pressed the heel of his palm against his forehead. Taught to by the Witness... As a child, he'd told the Witness in detail how he would have destroyed the X-men's killers, how they deserved the worst punishments imaginable for what they did to the world. How they could never be forgiven. He'd pushed his foster father away without realizing it, reminding him every time he called him 'Witness' that he was the last one to see the X-Men alive. Then he hated him for not turning to him for help when the madness began to take hold. For leaving him and Shard alone again.

Bishop came to a decision and holstered his gun. Standing up, he walked out of the bushes towards the Cajun.

Gambit spun as Bishop came close, almost falling over in the process. He had to grab the gate to keep upright.

"Bishop," he said.

Bishop nodded, careful not to let his discomfort and the loathing he still felt show in his voice. "Are you leaving, LeBeau? The vote was only a tie."

Remy lifted his chin stubbornly, but Bishop knew it was faked. The Witness had taught him to look his proudest when he was actually his weakest. He'd looked very proud indeed when the doctors came to take him away. It was a memory Bishop hadn't been sure he'd ever be able to get over.

"I still an X-Man. It up t' me t' break de tie."

Bisop nodded. "I see. Why don't you take your bike?"

Gambit didn't quite seem to know what to make of his attitude. Finally, he shifted his cast uncomfortably. "I can' ride. I t'ought I send for it later. I take de bus for now."

He was looking suspicious, so Bishop reached past him to unlock the gate. Letting the Cajun go was one of the hardest things he'd ever done, but somewhere in him, a little boy said it was right.

"I assume you have made arrangements to leave? You should inform the professor at the least so that he can program Cerebro to omit your requests."

A shake of the head. "Non. I left a note for Rogue on de kitchen table, though."

"I'll see that she gets it."

"Uh, oui." Labouriously, Gambit slung his bag over his shoulder and took a few steps. Then he stopped and looked back. "Why you bein' so nice t' me? I t'ought you wan'ed me dead."

Bishop glared at him, seeing again the dichotemy of the man he blamed as the traitor of the X-Men and the father who'd loved him and showed it whenever he taught him to protect himself, scavenged food for him while he went hungry himself, or told him he was proud of him. He was family, a father in truth if not in blood, and he owed him for everything he ever gave him. For keeping him alive without asking anything in return and for making him the man who would stop him from making the biggest mistake of his life. "You, yes," he told him. "You I would cheerfully kill if it didn't mean doing so in cold blood. But there's someone else I've wanted for a long time to be alive and well." Gambit looked confused. "Just consider it repaying part of a debt to a very old friend."

Gambit looked as if he wanted to say something, but didn't know what. Finally, he turned and walked away. Bishop watched him go, but he didn't turn back. Eventually, Gambit moved out of his sight and he locked the gate and went back to his self-imposed post.

Rogue was getting ready for bed when she heard a knock at her door. "Come in," she called, putting down her hairbrush.

Bishop walked in. "Rogue, Gambit left an hour ago. He told me to give this to you." He handed her a letter.

For a moment, Rogue could only stare at him. Then she ripped open the letter and scanned the contents.

Rogue, I have to go away, otherwise I think the X-Men will
be torn apart and Sinister will win. I'm sorry I didn't say
goodbye in person, but I was afraid that if I saw you, I
wouldn't have the nerve to do it. Please forgive me for
everything. I love you.

Remy

Screaming at the top of her lungs, Rogue grabbed the nearest solid object, a lamp, and threw it through the window. Bishop ducked and she flew over to the closet. Grabbing her suitcase, she pulled it out, along with half the shelving and threw it on the bed. Snapping it open, she began to fill it with assorted clothes and toiletries as fast as she could. She was still shrieking obsenities as the door began to fill with X-Men, all staring at her in amazement.

"Rogue, what is wrong?" Storm asked.

"HE LEFT ME! THAT SCUM-SUCKIN' SWAMP RAT LEFT ME!" She closed the bulging suitcase with a click. "Well, if he thinks he's gonna do th' noble thing an' be alone foh th' rest o' his life, have ah got a suhprise foh him!" Spinning around, she grabbed Bishop by the front of his uniform and pulled his face to within an inch of her own.

"Where- is- he?" She grated, biting off each word.

Quickly, Bishop decided he didn't want to be the next object hurled through the window, or the wall.

"He took the bus."

Rogue dropped him, grabbed her suitcase and flew for the window. Suddenly, she stopped in mid-hover, turned to the assembled X-Men and waved.

"Bye," she said sweetly. Then she was gone. A sonic boom shook the mansion and the rest of the window came crashing down.

"Wait!" Beast yelled. "Rogue, there is information I need to impart to you!" He ran for the stairs.

After about ten seconds of total silence, Wolverine started to laugh. "I sure don't envy that Cajun when she catches up t' him. And he thinks he hurts now."

Cyclops shook his head slowly, leaning against Jean in exhaustion. "Gambit became stuck in Rogue's body. Then he was freed, helped Sinister, helped us, and left. Now Rogue's left after him and Beast's gone after her. I don't care what anyone says or does after this. Nothing can surprise me now." He looked over them all, swaying a bit. "Go ahead, try and surprise me. You can't. I'm numb."

Bishop turned to face him. "Cyclops," he said. "I want to change my vote."

Quickly, Rogue flew along the road, her suitcase in one hand and a bus ticket in the other. She'd gone to the bus terminal first, and used the same information-gathering technique she'd used on Bishop to learn Gambit had gotten on the first bus to leave. She'd bought a ticket and flown after it, She was still mad, but scared too; afraid that Remy had left because he didn't want her anymore.

She saw the rear lights of the bus ahead. Flying past it, she landed in the middle of the road, dropped her suitcase and put her hands out, ready to stop it by force if she had to.

With a great screeching of air brakes, the bus stopped and the door opened.

"Are you nuts?" The driver yelled as she climbed on board. "I could have run you over!"

Rogue smiled and handed him her ticket. "Y'all left me b'hind at th' terminal, sugah."

He gaped at her. "But, that was twenty miles back!"

"Ah know. It was quite a trip catchin' up." She started for the back of the bus as it started moving again.

The bus was about half full, most of the passengers trying to get some sleep. Remy sat almost at the rear, his head resting against the window while he dozed. He hadn't even realized they'd stopped and she felt a lump in her throat.

She slid into the seat next to him. Remy," she whispered, careful not to nudge his wounded arm.

Gambit's eyes opened blearily and he looked at her for a long minute. "Chere," he said at last. "You make it real hard for a man t' sneak away quietly."

She glared at him. "Why didn't y'all take me with ya?"

"An' ask y' t' leave de X-Men? I couldn' do dat."

"Ah don't see why ya left anyway."

"Dey voted me out!"

"No, they didn't. It was a tie."

"Oui. An' I be breakin' dat tie."

"Y'all can't do that," she fumed. "Y'all are the one gettin' voted on. Ya can't vote on yaself."

"Oui, I can."

"No!"

"Oui!"

"No!"

"Oiu!"

"Will you two shut the fuck up?!" the driver yelled. "People are trying to sleep!"

"Yeah!" everyone else choroused.

Suddenly, there was the sound of honking and the bus stopped again as a red convertible swerved in front of it and halted.

"I don't believe this!" The driver thundered as he yanked the door open. "Where are all you freaks coming-- Oh, shit!"

A broad, furry face grinned at him. "Salutations and apologies for interrupting your scheduled transit time. I shan't be but a moment." He climbed on board. Several of the passengers started to scream.

"Please!" he called. "There is no need for trepidation. I'm a doctor, not a furry blue mutant. Well, actually, I'm both, but we won't go into that. Personal matter, you know." He scurried down the aisle and hopped into the empty seat in front of Gambit and Rogue. Putting on his stethescope from his medical bag, he began to examine the Cajun.

"Beast," Rogue whispered. "What are y'all doin' here?" Remy couldn't say anything around the tongue depressor in his mouth, but his eyes asked the same question.

Beast smiled at her. "Gambit still needs medical supervision. I felt it incumbant upon me to examine him to be sure he was fit to travel." He continued the exam, making occasional notes on a clipboard while everyone else on the bus huddled fearfully in their seats. The driver muttered to himself, but with Hank's car parked in front of him, there was little he could do.

Finally, he finished and grinned toothily at Gambit. "You're doing wonderfully! Sh'iar medical technology is an amazing thing. But you do need more recuperation time in a medical facility to ensure a complete recovery. I took the liberty of contacting one of my collegues who runs a clinic in a city this bus passes through. He has a bed waiting for you and I urge you to go there so strongly that I will tie you up and carry you there myself if you disagree. Understood?"

"Uh, oui."

"Excellent." He turned to Rogue. "Since you are obviously planning to accompany him on his travels, I leave his care in your capable hands until you reach the clinic." He handed her a piece of paper. "Here's the address. Now for his medicine."

"Med'cine?" Remy asked.

"Yes. To start, this pill is used to ensure his body does not reject its new lungs, which is not likely since they are technically his old lungs." He handed her a huge bottle. "This is to prevent post-operative infection... nausea... to help him sleep... to wake him up... diarrhea... constipation... pneumonia..."

Rogue watched in amazement as Beast piled a plethora of pills, vials, needles and thermometers into her lap. Remy looked like he wanted to be sick, but was afraid it would get him more pills. Finally, Beast looked at the pile in Rogue's lap, scooped it all back into his bag and handed that to her.

"Send me the remainder when you reach the clinic."

Rogue smiled at him, glad to see someone in the X-Men who wasn't judging them.

"Thanks, Beast. Ah don't know how ta thank ya."

Remy stared at the bag in horror. "Neither do I."

Beast grinned. "I have one more item to inform you of, then I'll be on my way. I was intrigued by the way you, Rogue, were able to perform cardiopulminary ressucitation upon the Cajun here without the usual effect of your powers being experienced. So I ran a few tests." He settled back on his haunches and began speaking in his 'lecture voice.'

"I initially took a sample of Gambit's dioxyriboneucleic acid and examined it, partially to see if any genetic damage occured in the cloning process. Your health is good, Remy, but I recommend strongly that you see me before you decide to have any children. But I digress. After these initial examinings, I took a sample of Rogue's DNA and compared the two. They weren't identical, of course, but there were a large number of similarities. More than would normally be expected. This is because, Rogue, when you first absorbed Remy, his DNA grafted onto yours. It is not exactly active, but it is there. I also found Carol Danvers' DNA as well. It is why you retain their powers permenantly. At any rate, your absorption power has no effect on you. Rather, it has no effect of your DNA. When your DNA was altered by the introduction of Carol's and Remy's, your body adjusted itself to ignore the new DNA strands. This allowed you to keep functioning, but by default, it means both Carol and Remy are now permenantly immune to your powers."

His grin broadened. "Well, I must be going. Have a good evening, you two." He bounded to the front of the bus and out to his car, singing Love is a many splendored thing all the way. The car peeled away.

The bus started up again while the driver muttered something about running over the next person to get in his way.

For about five minutes after that, neither Remy or Rogue moved or spoke. The bag was a heavy weight in Rogue's lap, but she didn't notice. Nor did Remy feel his cast and stitches. They just sat together silently.

Finally, Remy shifted slightly. "Y'know, chere, English not my first language, and sometime I have trouble understandin' it. I still t'ink in French. Henri I have trouble understandin' at de best a times. But I mus' be really missin' somet'ing 'cause I t'ought he jus' say dat I be immune t' y' powers."

Rogue nodded slowly. "That's what he said, sugah."

"Oh. What do we do now?"

"Ah don't know. Ah don't wanta argue anymore."

"I don' want to either, chere. But I still want you t' go back t' de X-Men."

Rogue closed her eyes against the pain in her heart. "Even though we c'n touch now?"

He sighed. "Rogue, I love you. I love you more dan anyt'ing an' I don' wan' you t' t'row away everyt'ing like I did. You still have a place wit' de X-Men. Dey your fam'ly. I wan' you t' be happy wit' dem."

She turned to face him. "Ah won't be happy unless ah'm with you."

His voice begged her to understand, just as something deep inside his eyes told her he wanted her to stay. "I don' know where I going."

"Ah don' care."

"I never been able t' hold down a real job. No one trust my eyes."

"So ah'll work, or we'll open our own business."

He bent forward until his forehead touched hers and Rogue marvelled at her first real touch of his skin.

"Rogue... please..."

"Ah'm not leavin' ya, sugah. Not unless ya can look me in th' eye an' tell me to."

Lying was easy. He'd done it a thousand times before to people a lot less naive than Rogue. Remy lifted his head and looked into her eyes. They were red on black, mirroring his own, and he found that it was like looking at himself. At the piece of his soul that had been torn away, the voice in his mind that Sinister stole from him.

"Well?" She asked.

"Stay wit' me," he whispered.

Her eyes- his eyes- softened with tears. "Ah will," she whispered back.

He kissed her. It was a gentle kiss at first, as soft as the kisses they'd shared in her mindscape when he had no body of his own. Then it started to deepen and Rogue threw her arms around his neck, overwhelmed by the wonder of it, the purely physical sensation of his body against hers, his lips pressing, his hands feeling. Before, it'd all been guided by her inexpert belief of how touching a man should feel, but now she realized that she hadn't had any idea of what it was like at all. It wasn't something that could be imagined. Only experienced. She deepened the kiss, surrendering to him as he surrendered to her.

"Get a room!" The driver yelled.

Flushed and embarrassed, Rogue pulled back. Remy was breathing heavy, his face pale and eyes smokey with desire. "I t'ink he got a good idea dere, chere."

Rogue smiled and lightly tapped his arm. He flinched. "Ah think ya need a little more time first, sugah."

"Who, me? I feel great!"

"Don' lie, Remy. Y'all need ta get ta that clinic."

"No, I don'."

"Yes, ya do."

"No, I don'."

His eyes were twinkling at her and Rogue couldn't help but laugh.

"Y'all are incorrigible!

"Yup."

She laughed again and settled back to enjoy the rest of the trip, her gloveless hand holding his.

For the first time in almost a week, it wasn't raining. Rogue looked up in surprise as she stepped out of her hotel. It was supposed to rain for another three days.

Ah'd forgotten what th' sun looked like, she mused as she walked down the street. It didn't matter anyway. The only time she was outside was when she was walking back and forth between the hospital and the hotel.

Gambit shouldn't have tried to travel, not yet. His body hadn't been ready for the strain, and by the time they'd reached the clinic, he'd been in bad shape. After two days there, he'd been transferred to the IC unit of the local hospital. Rogue tried not to worry. Remy was running a high fever and had the onset of pneumonia, but he was fighting and the doctors were using the best medical technology around to save him. Her lip curled. The best medical technology outside of the Sh'iar equipment at the mansion. If only Remy had stayed there. If only he'd been allowed to.

Rogue walked up the steps to the hospital, trying hard not to feel resentment for her teammates, but it wasn't easy.

Ah know Remy made a mistake, but they shoulda had more faith in him. Th' X-Men are suhposed ta be better than that.

The hospital smelled sterile and unhappy. Rogue hated it. She hated the ICU ward more, but was grateful to even be allowed in it. The doctors wouldn't let her see Remy at all at first, until she lied and told them she was his commonlaw wife. Now she was allowed a fifteen minute visit each day. The rest of the time, she sat outside the ICU, watching him through the glass, or brooded in her hotel room.

Rogue took the elevator to the ICU floor. Remy didn't talk much. He was usually too tired, so mostly they sat and held hands. Rogue found herself smiling as she remembered the dry, warm feeling of his skin, his fingers intertwining with her own. She was still amazed at how he could run his thumb across her palm and she would feel it down to her toes. The smile was still on her face as she stepped off the elevator and went down the hall to see him. A moment later, she walked around the corner into the ICU waiting room and stopped in surprise.

The X-Men were there.

It was all of them, blue and gold teams both, all waiting as Professor Xavier talked the nurse into letting them by.

Oh mah god, she thought, clapping a hand over her mouth to keep from shrieking out her joy. How could ah ever have doubted they'd come?

Bobby saw her first. "Hi, Rogue," he said, walking over to her with a grin, his hands in his pockets. "Bet you never thought you'd see us again."

"No, ah... what are y'all doin' here?"

He shrugged. "After you left, someone changed their vote, so we had to meet again to discuss it. That's when Cannonball said he hadn't known the Cajun long enough to make an informed decision, so he dropped his vote and abstained." He sighed, rolling his eyes as several other X-Men came over to them. "So we voted again, and with ten people there, it was six for keeping him in the group and only four to boot him out. With your vote, that makes it seven for him. Not everyone liked it, and Scott really doesn't like it, but we all decided after a lot of arguing that the only thing we could do is come here and take Remy back into the X-Men. If he's still interested." He sounded a little like he hoped he wouldn't be.

Rogue's eyes filled with tears. "Thank you," she whispered, throwing her arms around the startled Bobby's neck. He could only stammer in reply.

"You are welcome, child," Storm told her. "I only regret that this decision was not reached sooner."

"It woulda been," Logan grated. "'Cept some people don't know when they're beat." He glanced in Scott's direction.

"Ah- ah'm so happy!" Rogue looked up at Bobby's face. "Were y'all th' one ta change ya vote, sugah?"

He hesitated. "Um, no." He pointed over her shoulder. "Bishop did."

Slowly, Rogue let go of him and turned to look at the big man. He didn't meet her gaze, as though he were ashamed for changing his mind. But at the same time, he looked more at peace with himself than she'd ever seen him.

"Bish?" The X-Men stood back as she took a step towards him. "Why, sugah? Ah though ya hated Gambit."

He stared at the wall for a moment, then straightened his back and turned to face her. She caught her breath. She'd never seen such pride in anyone's face before. Such strength.

"I don't hate Gambit," he told her. "I never did, and I made a mistake in thinking I could. You were correct, Rogue, in believing there was something more between us."

"Like what?" Bobby asked. "You're not sleeping with him, are you?"

Archangel slapped him across the back of the head. "Grow up."

Rogue ignored him, as did Bishop. He was looking right at her, as though he were confessing to her alone and the rest of the X-Men weren't there.

"Bish?" She whispered.

"LeBeau is my father," he admitted.

"What is this, Star Wars?"

"I said to grow up!"

"Ow!"

Rogue took the final few steps and put a hand on his shoulder. "Ah never knew."

"No one does, in this time. But he did make me his son in mine."

"An' when ya came back in time an' thought he was th' traitor... Oh, Bishop, ah'm so sorry."

The pride never cracked, not even when she put her arms around him, joined a moment later by Storm, Jean and, eventually, the rest of the X-Men.

Gambit had been asleep for most of the day, only waking up for brief periods he wasn't sure weren't dreams. During one of those times, he'd though he'd seen Sinister standing over him. He'd tried to scream, but the pneumonia that was trying to settle in his lungs wouldn't let him. Sinister had said something about 'genetic potential' and 'family lines', then gave him a series of shots that made it easier to breathe. He'd gone back to sleep, and woke up next to hear a doctor tell a nurse that his temperature was finally back to normal and he was going to make it.

Now he woke to his favourite dream of all. Rogue, standing over him with the X-Men, all of them forgiving him and asking him to return to the X-Men.

"You are not dreaming, Remy," Storm told him. "We are here and there is nothing to forgive." Scott looked like he was about to say something, but Jean elbowed him in the ribs.

Remy blinked slowly, finding he felt well enough to actually speak. "Chere?" He rasped.

She sat on the edge of the bed, pulled off her glove and help his hand. "Ah'm here. We all are, an' once ya feel bettah, we'll take ya home."

Beast looked up from Gambit's chart. "Not for several weeks, but indubiably."

"It'll be good to have you back, Remy," Xavier said, Jean nodding in agreement. Scott still didn't look happy, but he kept quiet. So did Psylocke.

"God, I hate sappy endings," Bobby muttered.

"Shut up!"

"Ow! Stop hitting me!"

A quick pushing contest strted near the door between Bobby and Warren. Scott went to pull them apart while Logan began growling.

Unaccountably, Remy began to laugh, which hurt, but felt good anyway.

"Do I wan' know what change all y' minds?"

To his surprise, it was Bishop who answered. "I'll tell you when you've recovered."

"Uh, why do I get de feelin' dat I not goin' t' like what y' tell me?"

Rogue smiled. "Ah dunno, sugah. Ah guess it depends on how ya feel about time-lost kids."

"Hehn?"

She bent over to kiss him on the lips. "Nevah mind, sugah. Ah'm jus' glad th' X-Men want us back." Suddenly, her eyes widened. "Y'all do want ta go back ta th' X-Men, don't ya?"

He looked at her slyly. "Dunno, chere. I may get a better offer."

Eyebrows rose. "From who?"

"I dunno. Maybe de Fantastic Four."

"What? They'd never take you!"

"Would too!"

"Would not!"

"Too!"

"Not!"

"And people tell me I'm immature," Bobby commented.

"This is nothing," Bishop muttered to him in an undertone. "Once, when I was fifteen, I saw him and my sister keep up an argument like this for an hour and a half."

Charles turned his wheelchair to the door. "We should leave them to work this out alone."

The X-Men left, muttering among themselves as Remy and Rogue continued to argue.

"Not!"

"Too!"

Once the last X-Man was out of sight, Remy stopped.

"Y'know, chere. Dis arguing be de fastest way I know t' clear a room."

"Ah know. Why do ya think ah do it?"

Remy grinned as she pulled the curtains closed and leaned down to take advantage of their privacy

"I can do this. I know I can. I can... Whoa! Ow!"

Remy sat back down on his bed with a curse. Muttering in pain to himself, he tried again to stand up, but his body wouldn't have anything to do with it.

"Mon dieu!"

"Problems, LeBeau?"

Panting, Remy looked up to see Bishop standing in the door to his room. This wasn't the first time he'd seen him since he was brought home, and he was not in the mood to deal with the strange mood swings Bishop had been showing. First he wanted to kill him, then he acted like they were secret friends.

"Whatcha want, pup?" He grated.

He didn't notice the way Bishop started at the word "Pup."

"I heard you swear and thought I would make sure you were all right." He stepped into the room. "Why are you trying to get up? Hank said to stay in bed for another week."

"Yeah, well, Beast can walk to de fridge whenever he want, neh? I gotta wait 'til someone 'member t' feed me."

"The rest of the X-Men are on a mission," Bishop told him. "And Rogue drove the Professor to a conference. You must have been asleep when they left."

Remy tried again to get up. It hurt like anything. His legs felt like water. "Den I better get m' own breakfast. Why you here anyway?"

The big man shrugged. "Someone has to stay to guard the mansion."

The Cajun's lip twisted with bitterness. "And guard it from me too, n'est pas? Why else would you stay. Don' trust me none, eh? Still 'tink I gonna let Sinister in here again?"

Bishop's eyes narrowed. "If I thought that, I never would have allowed you back in the mansion."

Frustrated and hungry, Remy stopped trying to stand and turned on the bed to face him. "Why you do dat, anyway? I 'member lyin' on dat floor down dere and you tryin' t' shoot me. What stop you?"

Bishop turned away. "This is not the time."

"Don' you turn away from me, pup!"

Bishop, in the act of turning back to the door, stopped, and Remy saw the slight smile that crossed his face.

"What so damn funny?"

"Nothing."

Strangely furious, Remy forced himself to his feet. "Don' you lie t' me, you- Ah!" Gasping, he collapsed, Bishop darting in to catch him before he hit the floor. Lifting the Cajun up, he carried him back to bed.

"Don't try to get up, I'll bring you breakfast."

Exhausted, Remy lay back and watched the big man head back for the door. Bishop," he whispered. Bishop stopped. "Why you doin' dis? What you not tellin' me?"

Bishop bowed his head.

"Bishop? Pourquoi?"

He looked at him proudly. Strangely, it reminded Remy of himself when he was backed into a corner, outnumbered and forced to bluff his way out.

"In my time," Bishop told him. "You're called the Witness, because you were the last one to see the X-Men alive."

Remy nodded. "I know. You told me dat already."

Bishop sighed. "What I didn't tell you was that, from the time I was eight, you raised me to be your son."

Remy blinked. "Hehn?" He managed.

Again, the slight smile showed. "You are my father, Remy LeBeau. Except for my sister, you were the only family I had. Have."

He walked out the door, leaving a stunned Cajun to consider what he'd just been told. A father? Him? To a man who ended up being the most straightlaced, by the book boor he'd met since Scott?

Where I go wrong?

Quietly, since his chest wasn't healed enough for a full out laugh, Gambit started to chuckle, and was still chuckling when Bishop came back with his meal.