AN: This story was written for the Rogue/Gambit 2020 Fanworks week: Day 7, Alternate Universe.

Enjoy!

Gambit cautiously pushed the tower window open. He scanned the ground in front of him and anything else in the nearby vicinity, but saw no signs of anything that might be a magical trap. One could never be certain when breaking into an archmage's tower, especially one that had a bounty on their head for the last ten years.

He gingerly set one foot inside and on the floor. He waited. Nothing happened. He placed the other foot inside, pull his full weight on his feet and waiting again while continuing to take in his surroundings. Still nothing.

It appeared to be a cross between a study and a sitting room. There was a lounge, a desk, a workbench, and a large bookshelf full of books. Other shelves were full of various small boxes and bottles.

He carefully made his way over to the desk, the carpet muffling the sound of his steps. He inspected the desk from all angles before he dared to touch it.

Gambit reached out his hand and froze. He froze, not out of choice or fear, but because his body felt like it was held in place.

The lights went on. He couldn't turn his head. He couldn't even move his eyes, though he did see a blurred figure out of the corner of his eye. The blurred figure came into focus as she moved to stand in front of him.

She was dressed in a simple nightgown, her arms and legs bare. Her hair, brown with a white streak at the front, was unkempt like she's just gotten out of bed. For someone who had a bounty on her head for at least ten years, she appeared a lot younger than Gambit expected. Perhaps that was just magic at work. She was supposed to be exceptionally powerful after all.

She studied him seriously, and after an extended silence, said: "Curious. Assassins usually try to find my bedroom at this time of night, not raid my desk."

Abruptly, Gambit found himself able to move his head again. He shook it, blinked a few times with much relief, and then looked into the archmage's bright green eyes.

"Ah, good evening chère," he said pleasantly. "Sorry to disturb you, but let me assure you, I would never enter a lady's bedroom uninvited."

"No? Just her house?"

"Well, I am a thief," Gambit went on, figuring that being charming and mostly honest was his best bet. "And this did seem like an ideal place to get valuable loot from."

"Mmmhmm." She folded her arms across her chest. "And what makes you think you would've even gotten away with it? Did it not occur to you that I could caught you in the act, or track you and my things down later?"

"Life's no fun if you don't take risks, ma chère," Gambit replied smoothly, paused for a moment, then said: "Besides, the mercenary gang, The Rippers, have gathered in force and are planning on attacking you at dawn. There's at least 40 of them, so I figure, even an archmage of your reputation would have her hands full."

The archmage studied him thoughtfully. "And why should I believe you're not a scout for these Rippers?"

"I'm not," Gambit said flippantly. "But I doubt that I could prove that to your satisfaction."

"Hmm." She leaned in and looked deeply into his red and black eyes. "Djinn or demon heritage?"

Gambit blinked in surprise. "Uh, could be either. Might be something else. I'm an orphan. Never met my parents."

She snorted. "Some people have all the luck."

"Excuse me?"

The archmage sat back in the desk chair. "My mother caught a djinn once. She used the first two wishes on herself, but in a moment of uncharacteristic generosity, she used the third wish on me: I wish that my daughter would have the ability to absorb knowledge and power from all she has contact with. Of course, djinn don't particularly like being captured and made slaves so rather than being a blessing, her wish for me became a curse."

Gambit swallowed, not really sure why she was telling him this.

"Everything I know and can do with magic I stole from other people," she said, "just by touching them."

She lifted her hand a mere hair's breath from Gambit's face. His heart raced and he didn't dare to move.

"If you haven't been telling me the truth, I suggest you tell me now," she said. "Because I am going to find out, one way or another."

"I assure you," Gambit said firmly, "I am but a simple thief who wishes you no harm."

"That better be true, for you sake, because you won't wake up again if it's not."

She touched him and everything went blank.

Gambit opened his eyes.

He was laying on the lounge in the archmage's sitting room / study. His head pounded: it was the worst headache he had in years. He groaned and sat up.

"Ah, good, you're awake."

Gambit looked up to see the archmage walking towards him. She was now dressed in a long, green dress with slits up both sides of the skirt, long sleeves, and trimmed with black. She wore matching leggings and gloves, and knee-high black boots.

"You may call me Rogue," she said as she stopped in front of him. "How's the headache?"

"I've had worse," Gambit replied. "Does this mean you've decided to believe me?"

"I got the proof from your own head that you were telling the truth. Except for the part about not entering a lady's bedroom without her permission." Rogue gave him a knowing smirk. "Apparently you will still do that to steal something."

Gambit rubbed his head. "People usually keep the really good stuff in their bedrooms."

Rogue chuckled and the sound surprised Gambit.

"So, uh, how long was I out for?" Gambit asked.

"Only an hour," Rogue replied and sat down beside him. "I would like to make a deal with you, Gambit."

The sound of his name startled him. He wondered just how much she had learnt of him from that curse of hers.

"A deal, huh?" Gambit asked warily.

"Yes. I have been thinking for some time now that I should leave this tower," Rogue said, and sighed. "When I first came here, the area was remote and under developed. At some point, word got out that this was where I was hiding and now bounty hunters come from far and wide to collect. It's tiresome, and it's time I moved on."

Gambit didn't reply. He just looked at her with a sinking suspicion that he knew where this was headed.

"I would like you to take me with you," Rogue said. "All I know of the world as it is right now is what I've gleaned from those who dare invade my home. That's not enough for a well-rounded understanding."

"I'm nor sure if that's such a good idea—"

"Relax, I'm not asking you to baby-sit me forever. A few months, maybe a year." She lifted her hand to forestall any objections. "And in exchange, you may take anything you want from my tower, and I will teach you magic."

Gambit paused for a moment. "I already know magic."

"You know a few parlour tricks," Rogue replied with a wave of dismissal. "You've barely tapped into the potential of your efreeti heritage."

"Efreeti?" Gambit repeated, unable to hide his surprise. "How can you know that?"

"I get power as well as knowledge," Rogue said. "This is hardly the first time I've tasted djinni power."

"This is… all very tempting, chère…" Gambit replied slowly, trying to think straight through his rapidly declining headache. "But taking you with me? I prefer to stay in the shadows, and you have a pretty big price on your head."

"I know, it's a risk for both of us." Rogue smiled knowingly at him. "But you like high stakes."

"I think I'm beginning to see why there's a price on your head, chère," Gambit said grumpily.

"Oh, you don't know the half of it. My mother is a very ambitious woman. She found all sorts of ways to make my curse work for her." Rogue sighed. "Ways that I regret to this day."

Gambit fell silent.

"I think I know a way I can make everyone think I'm dead though. This imminent attack from the Rippers… I think I can solve two problems," Rogue went on. "I'm going to let them in, and then bring the tower down."

"You think people would actually think you're dead?" Gambit asked.

Rogue shrugged. "At the very least, they won't know where to look for me. The last time I was in public, I was a child. No one who's seen me as an adult has lived to tell about it."

"Not even the locals?"

"I showed them an illusory form. An old man," Rogue said with a shake of her head. "People always seem to think of old men when they picture archmages."

"Sneaky. But the people who put the bounty will know you're a woman."

"Still don't know what I look like though." Rogue stood. "I'm leaving regardless. Whether I go with you or without you is up to you. I need to go prepare to demolish the tower." She lifted a hand as she started to walk off. "If you take anything, I'll assume that means you've agree. And I will know if you take anything."

Gambit let out a long, slow breath as she walked away, and laid back on the lounge. He did not like the fact that she'd siphoned all that personal information from him. On the other hand, in her shoes, would he have done any different? He wouldn't have survived this long if he trusted everyone, and she couldn't afford to trust everyone she met either: especially as most people of late had definitely been after the bounty on her head.

Learning more magic did appeal to him though. It appealed a lot. Many was the time he'd watched mages at work, fascinated by their skills. The most he could do was make things he touched blow up. It was fun, but not a particularly useful skill for a thief, except perhaps when a distraction was needed.

He preferred to work alone, the product of experience working with others. He was reluctant to even just travel with someone else. He wished he had a quick way of finding out if she was trustworthy. On the other hand, it had been that long since she'd last been outside, perhaps she didn't even know.

He supposed, if they could make things work, she would make for a powerful ally. He could use more of those.

Further possibilities crosses his mind as he mulled it over. He supposed the worst case scenario was that he died, and that was always the worst case scenario. But the best case scenario was rich with rewards, exactly the kind of stakes he loved to play for.

Gambit sat up, the headache now gone. He looked around the room. He couldn't see Rogue anywhere, but there was a noticable decrease in the number of things in the room. He suppose she already packed.

He picked himself up off the lounge and started looking through the shelves. Most of the remaining bottles and boxes left were empty, but he did find three potions and a couple of oils, all with magical properties, and neatly labelled.

"See anything you like?" Rogue asked.

Gambit jumped and looked over at her. "How'd you do that?"

"If we have a deal, I'll teach you."

"I don't like this, chère. You know enough about me to play me like a fiddle, and I know next to nothing about you."

Rogue sighed. "I know. I wish there had been another way, but…" she trailed off uncertainly.

"Yeah… Look, if we do this…" Gambit hesitated.

"You don't want me to touch you." Rogue said for him. "I understand."

"Sorry if that seems rude."

"No, I'd probably ask the same thing in your position. It's not like I can turn it off."

Gambit gaped at her. "You can't turn it off?"

"No."

"And you were a child when this happened?"

Rogue only nodded.

"Well that's… that's…" Words failed him briefly, then he frowned. "Wait, is it even safe for you to leave the tower? The world can get pretty crowded."

"It needs to be direct skin contact. As long as I'm covered up, there's no problem." Rogue gestured to her clothing.

Gambit nodded slowly, still horrified that she'd been so deprived for so long. "Okay, we have a deal."

He held out his hand to her. Slowly, Rogue extended her own hand to take his, and they shook on it.

"Thank you," she said softly.

He gave a half-shrug. "What can I say? I'm a sucker for a damsel in distress. And magic. And loot. Especially magic loot."

Rogue chuckled. "Let me show you the good stuff. Hmm… I think I have a ring of invisibility around here somewhere…"

"Oooh, really? I've always wanted one of those."