(A/N: Update? Yes! I am trying to finish this one and my trilogy before working on the others I was forced to leave unfinished. And before I start any of the new ideas I have bouncing around in my skull right now. To those who are still waiting for updates here, I appreciate you not giving up. I will try to finish this soon!)

Chapter 14

The morning before New Year's Eve dawned bright and sunny upon Xavier's school; the fresh blanket of snow that had been deposited on the existing batch caught the early morning rays, making it appear as though the landscape was littered with tiny diamonds. Jamie awoke when the sunlight first pushed through his window and he had laid in his bed for as long as he could but he could no longer stay under the covers. It was the day before another holiday, a holiday before another holiday and almost the last day of the year; he pressed his face against the cold window pane to peer over the outside world. Everything was so bright and cheerful; it beckoned people to come out and bask in the shimmery atmosphere. Racing to the bathroom to wash up, he brushed his teeth in record time before running back to get dressed and prepared to play the day away. They had spent all of the previous day taking down all the Christmas decorations, much to his dismay but to his delight, they replaced them with gold and silver decorations for New Years. There were streamers and a plastic disco ball hung from the ceiling in the big front room. There were banners saying Happy New Year hanging everywhere and Jamie had spied Kitty with bags of party favors. She was keeping them in the pantry and no one was to touch them until just before midnight; this was also the first year that he would be allowed to stay up until midnight. In Kitty's bags, Jamie had spied hats, a variety of noise makers, silly string, funny glasses consisting of the numerals for the New Year and confetti. On this day before another holiday, Jaime could no longer sleep. The freshly fallen snow was just begging him to come out, it seemed to be reminding him of the huge sled that he had found under Christmas tree the other day. Yes, it seemed like an appropriate morning for sledding. The boy was just a little dismayed that Remy wasn't there; Remy knew how to make excellent snow people. Something else the outside world seemed to be telling him. The world apparently needed more snowmen. Perhaps he would find Piotr, he made some pretty good snowmen, and he even carved an angel out of ice right after the first snow. The angel had looked decidedly like Kitty, which made her tear up though Jamie couldn't understand why. Just as Jamie had pulled on his mittens, his cellphone began to ring. It was a small one that limited who he could call and who could call him; it was mostly for emergencies and the only people who had his number were the teachers and some of the X-Men.

"Nuts," Jamie muttered looking down at his mittens. He would have to take them off to answer the phone. Probably better to wait until he was outside any, otherwise, how would he manage the doorknobs in his bulky mittens? Once the mittens were off Jamie picked up his phone and was pleased to see Remy's number. Only two people had Remy's number, Jamie and the professor. "Hi Remy! Are you and Rogue coming back for the New Year's Eve party tonight?"

"Sorry, homme, but non," Remy chuckled over the phone. "Rogue an' me… we still got a few things to work out. But it should be all worked out soon. Besides, we be around five hours ahead you here, almos' New Year's Eve where we are. Jus' wanted to check in wit' you. De others treatin' you ok? Didn't give you any guff, questioning you about me an' Rogue?"

"They started to," Jaime grumbled. "Well, Scott and Jean did. Kitty, Kurt, Piotr and Evan had my back; the others came around after that. The professor just said to keep the lines open in case you tried to call so I think they're cool with it. And I don't think Logan would let anyone give me any, um, guff."

"No," Remy bit back a chuckle wondering if Jaime knew what guff really meant. "I don't suppose he would. Me and Roguey, we still be ironing a few things out so we'll probably be gone for a bit longer. T'ink you can hold down de fort til we get back, mon ami?"

"You can count on me, mon capitiane!" Jaime said, saluting though he knew that Remy couldn't see him through the phone."

"Good man!"

"Remy?" Jamie had been bothered by Scott and Jean's negativity toward Gambit and Rogue's relationship. While he saw it as completely natural that the couple sought to get away from the hustle and bustle of the mansion to work things out merely because Remy said it was necessary, evidently, their fearless leader did not. Being the youngest of that crowd, Jaime understood the need to get away all too well. Though he didn't understand everything about what had happened between the couple, if Remy said it was best then wouldn't he know better than Scott? Remy and Rogue were trying to fix things with each other, not everyone else in the mansion. Despite his young age, Jamie could see something in their eyes when they looked at each other, the same something in their eyes when they weren't looking at each other but had to be thinking of the other. It was a little like what Bobby had looked like when Amara had punched him in the gut when she caught him trying to spy on the girls locker room. It was pain. He had seen it often in Remy's gaze while Rogue was gone and it only seemed to intensify when she returned. Not being together made them hurt. Ironing things out, as Remy had put it, seemed the only way to make that hurt go away.

"Oui?"

"You love her, don't you," it really wasn't a question.

There was a few seconds of silence on the other end of the line and then: "Oui."

"And she loves you."

"Oui. I know dat she does."

"Maybe you guys should just remember that while you're ironing everything."

"We'll try, homme. We'll try."

That had been this morning. Jaime had a full day of sledding and building snowmen. By the time everyone gathered for dinner, Jaime had nearly forgotten about Remy's phone call. He was stuffing himself with the last of the leftover turkey, listening to everyone declare how they intended to sleep in late so they would be sure to able to stay up late. Kurt was teasing Amara and Jubilee about kissing at midnight, which of course made them giggle and roll their eyes. Jaime didn't quite understand that, especially when Scott said something about only caring about one kiss on New Year's. He was giving Jean that look that Remy referred to as "de dyin' calf look" and Jamie bit back a grin as Kitty and Tabitha turned toward each other, pretending to gag themselves with their fingers. Sap, Jamie shook his head remembering how often Remy had muttered that under his breath so only Jaime and Kitty could hear whenever Scott made statements like that. Perhaps because she was Rogue's best friend and Rogue had cared for Remy, Kitty usually sided with Remy on things. The same usually went for Kurt; he felt that his adopted sister had really loved Remy and that made him kind of like family. Piotr usually sided with Remy because he said that he had seen the noble side that Remy hid from the rest of the world. When Evan had returned, seemingly in control of his powers, Remy had been the only one who didn't give him a wide berth or act like he could explode at any moment. The first night when the others had found excuses to vacate the rec room as Evan entered, Remy had tossed down a deck of cards and told him to cut it. They played poker until well after midnight, using pretzel sticks instead of chips as the professor frowned upon gambling on the school grounds. Evan had won nearly every hand. When Remy stood up he gave Evan a wry smile and said: "Looks like Lady Luck prefers you t'night, mon ami. Pity dere wasn't any money riding on dat game, hein?" Evan had looked up from his huge pile of pretzel sticks, his smile fading as he realized that Remy had not only let him win but he made sure to let him know this. They had been friends ever since.

"It's been a few days, Professor," Jean began after gracing Scott with a benevolent smile. "Shouldn't Gambit and Rogue have contacted us by now?"

"Rogue probably would," Scott muttered between bites, his expression mostly hidden behind the ruby quartz glasses. "If she was able to."

"Like, what's that supposed to mean?" Kitty looked over at Cyclops with a frown, the volcano she was sculpting with her mashed potatoes momentarily forgotten. "If she was able to? It's only been like two days. Maybe they just don't feel like calling in? Checking in is a total mood killer, after all."

"Rogue was always responsible as an X-Man," Scott said, passively, as he focused on his food. "Maybe something is preventing her from checking in…. or someone."

"Are you insinuating that Remy is preventing Rogue from calling us, Scott?" Professor Xavier asked, as he wiped his napkin and set it aside. He could feel the emotions beginning to roil around the table between those who accepted Remy and those who sided with their combat leader.

"Wasn't much insinuation in his statement, Chuck," Logan grunted, sensing the shift in the room as well but decided to stay calm and see if the other students would follow his lead. Discussions and arguments could get pretty heated with this many people and so many opinions; his dinner was a little too good to give up at the moment. "So Cyke, you still haven't accepted Gambit as an X-Man after more than five years?"

"I'm saying that his behavior doesn't add up," Scott replied sulkily as Jean watched him closely, frowning at the emotions that were fairly wafting off of her fiancé. Few people had known that when Rogue first came to Bayville, her wariness of the X-Men was tempered by a crush that she had on their field leader. Something that became stronger once she joined and was no doubt one of the minor reasons for her joining; aside from the whole Mystique deceiving her part. The crush she had took quite a few hits when it became apparent that Scott had feelings for Jean; especially since Jean's popularity had made Rogue feel like she was even more of an outsider. How was she supposed to compete with the head cheerleader, Homecoming and Prom Queen? How was the resident Goth supposed to compete with the preppy Miss Popular? That all seemed to change after Gambit came along. With the realization that someone was actually interested in Rogue for who she was and not what she could be gave the anti-social southerner a massive boost to her self-esteem. She became surer of herself and began to break out of that no-man's land she had erected around herself. She laughed more, she lived more and she left behind the school girl crush she had on their fearless leader, exchanging it for an adult romance. A whirlwind one at that. Where Cyclops had made her feel like the kid sister, gleaning the scraps of attention he tossed her every now and then while he adored Jean; Remy made her feel like a goddess, so ardently did he desire and worship her. This had annoyed Cyclops at first but he hadn't really expected the relationship to last. He was expecting Remy to lose interest in Rogue after the novelty of chasing the untouchable and unattainable wore off. Personally, he had never seen the draw and fascination of the Cajun. Girls swooned when he would wink, grin or make some thinly veiled sexual innuendo and Scott would rolled his eyes behind his ruby lenses. Gambit was a distraction both in the Danger Room, in briefings and on missions. His smart-ass quips were never appreciated and his gall left quite a lot to be desired. Especially when he would flirt with Jean, knowing that she was spoken for. Yet this behavior was not only accepted but encouraged. Even when the teachers would attempt to reprimand him, there was always humor in their eyes, smiles dancing behind their disapproving glares. Even Wolverine would banter with Gambit in the most inappropriate of times.

Then Rogue left, fed up, in Scott's opinion, with Gambit's behavior. The Cajun pursued Rogue relentlessly but it was obvious that he had dalliances with strange women once he struck out on his own. If the feelings Remy claimed to have for Rogue had been true than it would have been easy for him to remain faithful to her. Yet there had been many a night when Gambit would stumble in at an ungodly hour, reeking of cheap booze and even cheaper perfume. Then there would be the arguments with Rogue about the same issues over and over. Rogue had finally had enough and left Gambit to his vices. With her return, it was obvious, at least to Scott, that Rogue had outgrown Gambit. She was not only beautiful but she was self-assured, self-confident; she had left behind that unsure little goth girl and returned a goddess. So rare and fine, and so much her own. There was a beautiful purity about her, almost like a statue carved from the most pristine marble. She was like a marvelous, distant queen to be worshiped from afar. It was clear that the other men at the mansion felt the same way, given the attention that she garnered when she came back home; she gave out her laughter, her attention, a queen granting favors. And there was a part of Scott Summers that knew this queen in her ivory tower once fancied him. Gambit had clearly not respected this or realized just what behavior was acceptable because he tried to drag Rogue down to his level.

"After Rogue left four years ago, Gambit acted like she hadn't even existed," Scott continued, loftily as though he were the only one who understood the true way of things. "If he cared for her like he claimed, don't you think he would have gone after her or even tried to contact her? We all know that he… had other girlfriends." He chose his words carefully for the benefits for the younger students around the table watching the exchange curiously. "He never really was very subtle about it. Then when she comes back finally, he ignores her even though she went out of her way to be cordial to him. They sparred in the Danger Room and he was pretty brutal."

"How do you know that they sparred?" Kurt spoke up, looking a little confused. "I never heard anything about it."

"I saw that a session was running and went in to check on them," Scott answered, waving his hand dismissively, not mentioning what else he saw in the Danger Room. The two southerners trouncing each other as though they were mortal enemies until their wrestling had taken them into the power-free alcove; there they stayed, locked in a passionate embrace that he watched for a few moments too long before taking himself off in a huff. "Then all of a sudden, he's buying her jewelry and taking her on trips to work on their relationship? What relationship? The one they haven't been in for four years? Remy has just seen that Rogue has outgrown him and is trying to worm his way back into her affections the only way he knows how, by kidnapping her. Just like he did that first time around."

"Oh puh-leeeeeaaaasssssseee!" Kitty scoffed, outraged on behalf of her friends. "They've been, like, so jonesing for each other. The whole time they were apart they were hurting. They just couldn't get over each other. When Rogue thought that Remy might hate her for leaving, she just like, wanted to die. You don't have anything to back up what you just said, Rogue is my best friend and I was the one who cried with her almost every night since she got back. It totally ripped her up inside to think that she had hurt him so badly. She is like, so not over him and he's still sooooo gone on her. A blind dude could see it!"

"Ja!" Kurt spoke up in defense of his foster sister's love life, his long blue tail swishing erratically as a testament to his strong feelings about the matter. "She tried to hide it but she was totally hiding the fact that she was crying herself to sleep every night. Powdering her face to hide it but if you looked in her eyes, you could tell that she had been crying. Rogue wouldn't just dismiss her feelings for Remy, she's not like that. She cared deeply for him and she still does. And the simple explanation for Remy's behavior was that he was grieving for her but when she came back, he didn't want to get hurt again so he kept her at arm's length."

"This is very true," Piotr, normally silent when people started taking sides knew that he had to speak up for his friend. He was not happy with Remy's name being maligned; the Cajun had his faults and while Remy would be the first to admit them, Piotr knew that the last thing Remy would ever do was treat a lady shamefully. He may be a scoundrel but he was an honorable one. "You speak of Rogue and Remy's relationship, something that is between them and only them. And, yes, there were other women, Remy made no secret of this but it was again, a matter that was between them, not everyone else. Remy may have been and perhaps still is a thief but he would never disrespect a lady. In the matters of love, Remy never really stole hearts, he took only the ones that were given freely."

*Sniff* At the sound of loud snuffling, all eyes turned toward Kitty, whose eyes were wide and bright with tears as she gazed lovingly at her boyfriend. "That was beautiful, sweetie!" The petite brunette whispered loudly.

"Spaseehbah, Katya," the very large Russian ducked his head down, his cheeks crimson from the attention and having spoken out so boldly but under the table, his hand connected with Kitty's. She gave his hand a warm squeeze that communicated her affection, pride and approval which caused his head to lift slightly but focused on his dinner after his uncomfortable trip outside of his comfort zone.

"Pfff," Scott shook his head, clearly annoyed by all the support Remy had garnered without even being there. "You remember that girl Sheila from our senior class with all the sisters and cousins? Remy went through that family like a recessive gene."

"Please, man," Evan cracked, a rude noise coming from his mouth as he speared another piece of turkey with a small spike. "Shelia was a skank and so were all her sisters. Most of the dudes in Bayville probably tapped that family tree…" Upon receiving a warning look from Storm, Evan knew it was wiser to curb his language. "Sorry, Auntie O." But his apology had been in a low tone and not enough to cover up Bobby snickering to Roberto: "Yeah, every dude but Scott." Sending the stately weather witch's glare to the two boys at the other end of the table who were immediately fascinated with their dinners. "But I mean, come on dude! Remy was totally different with Rogue. Look at the way he helped her through that whole Carol thing. And he actually "dated" her. She wasn't just a one night, er, uh…"

"Rodeo?" Bobby suggested with an innocent looking grin as he watched Evan struggle for an appropriate noun. This caused an explosion of giggles through all the students over fourteen and Logan cleared his throat menacingly in an attempt to not only silence them but cover his own desire to laugh.

"Robert? Roberto?" Professor Xavier spoke up when they students had quieted down. "Thank you for volunteering to do all of the dishes tonight. I think it's time everyone cleared their plates so our two volunteers can get started and then made for the rec room. Mr. McCoy helped Jubilee and Amara bake some cookies today. Girls, would you do the honor of serving the cookies and some hot chocolate?"

"I think Piotr was correct. This matter is entirely between Remy and Rogue," Charles said when most of the students had filed out of the room, leaving only those who had actually taken part in the discussion. He gazed at each person at the table in that way he had about him, the gaze that seemed to be looking right into them; some looked away from his gaze like Scott and Jean but most nodded in agreement. It was another moment before the Professor spoke again. "There is no evidence that Rogue was taken or being held against her will, and as one of our own, Remy deserves the benefit of the doubt. It was my hope that in coming home, Rogue would not only see that she could always come back, but that she and Remy would be able to straighten things out. From what little contact we've had with her over these years, I could tell that she wasn't entirely happy. And though he tries to hide his true feelings, Remy was not getting over what had happened. It cast a pall over both of them and they need to work this out. I never want any of my X-Men, my students… my children, to ever feel like they can't come home again. Until we hear anything to the contrary, I am going to consider this matter closed. Kitty was correct, it has only been two days. We will give them a few more days and if we haven't received word from them…"

"Um…" All eyes turned toward the doorway leading out of the dining room in the direction of the rec room to see Jaime peeking around.

"Jaime?" Charles was the epitome of calm as he beckoned the boy and waited until he had slunk to the professor's side before asking. "Have you anything to add to this discussion before it's closed?"

"Remy kinda called me this morning."

"What?!" Everyone began speaking at once, asking different questions concerning the whereabouts of the two missing lovebirds, how they were, if he had spoken to Rogue or just Gambit, why hadn't he called the mansion instead of Jamie's cell, did he know what they were doing, followed by Kitty exclaiming: "Ew! Scott! Why would they tell little Jamie what they were doing?"

Xavier held up his hand and the room went silent again. "Can you tell us what was said, Jamie?"

"He said he was calling to make sure no one gave me any guff the other day. He said it would take a couple more days," Jaime answered, looking only at the professor and not at faces around the table, hungry for information; or Tabitha, practically hanging inside the room, straining for fodder for the gossip mill. "He said that he and Rogue still had a few things to iron out and they probably wouldn't make it back in time for the New Year's Eve party." Taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly, Jaime paused for a moment as if debating whether or not to part with the rest of his information. "Professor, you said that this was only Remy and Rogue's business now but I asked Remy a few questions because I knew that some people," the boy tossed out a sidelong glance at Scott before continuing. "Don't believe it. I asked Remy if he loved Rogue… he said that he does. And that Rogue loves him. Remy has never lied to me and I believe him."

"Thank you, Jamie," Charles smiled warmly and gave the boy's shoulder a fatherly pat. "I appreciate you coming forth with this information and I assure you that no one will be pumping you for any more or giving you any 'guff'. If they do, let me know immediately, because as far as I am concerned, the matter is settled for now. But if Remy or Rogue contacts you again, please let us know immediately so we do not worry unnecessarily. If they happen to mention where they have gone…"

"Oh," Jaime exclaimed as he remembered something from the earlier conversation. "Remy said they wouldn't make it in time for the party but it was almost New Year's where they are because they're about five hours ahead of us."

"Thank you, Jaime. Now, why don't you run along and get some cookies before they're all gone."

"Five hours? That's like, somewhere in Europe," Kitty mused as Jaime scampered off. "Like… *gasp* France! What if they're in Paris?!" She let her head fall onto Piotr's well-muscled shoulder with a glazed look in her eye. "They'll be ringing in the new year in some romantic hotel room in the city of lights, toasting with fine, French champagne... Gawd! Rogue's so lucky."

XXX

It seemed as though his 'guests' would never leave. It was nearly midnight and Remy was watching them drive off, down the gravel drive toward the gates and he let out a frustrated sigh. The sooner this was over, the better. He only had one more day to go and thankfully, most of the arrangements were complete. He was filled with a nervous energy; there was still so much that could go wrong; he wasn't sure how he would be able to sleep and he knew that staying up was not a good idea. He would need his Remy wits about him and a foggy mind could undo years of careful planning. It would also very likely get him killed. Everything had to go off without a hitch and there were so many unknown variables. Between Rogue's wandering and Olivia's popping up at the most inopportune moments… The Cajun shucked off his Armani jacket, remembering just how much he hated dressing for dinner, and pulled out a pack of cigarettes. He rarely smoked anymore, Jamie had convinced him to quit but he usually kept a pack around for when he really needed a smoke. This was one of those times. He coaxed a single cigarette from the pack before sliding it back into his pocket and brought the cylinder to his lips. Horst was beside him in a moment with an antique gold lighter, its flame dancing as Remy leaned into it. Remy nodded his thanks to the butler and took that initial puff, inhaling the warm smoke, letting it curl down and penetrate his lungs before letting it out in a lovely, sinuous cloud… God, how he'd missed this. He felt a bit of the tension ease out of his shoulders. He would have to go upstairs and find some way to make Rogue understand what a precarious place they were in right now without giving away too much information. He couldn't think about her belligerence, her indignation; he couldn't think about anything but that ceremony. There was too much riding on it and damn it, if he had to drug her into the next day to make her stay put then he would do it. He thought of her coming downstairs in that dress… the way they looked at her… It was clear that they approved but he hated the way they stared at her. He thought of his conversation with Jamie earlier that day and part of him felt that he should tell her everything; he hadn't lied to the boy, he did love her. But there was that other part of him, the one that was still hurt, the part that thought she should know what that kind of betrayal felt like. From beside him, Horst watched the Cajun's face darken as he brooded behind those demonic eyes as they watched the fire dance upon the hearth in the dining room. The butler nearly turned and left but he had rather important news to report so he straightened up and waited to be recognized.

"Was dere sometin' else, Horst?" Remy's voice was harsher than he meant but the butler knew that it wasn't directed towards him.

"Mrs. Appley was doing her last rounds before turning in sir," Horst reported. "She stopped into the young lady's room, sir."

Remy winced, he knew he wasn't going to like what was coming next and he physically braced himself. "And?"

"She wasn't in her room, sir."

"Merde," Remy spat, rubbing his hand over his face. She couldn't stay put for a couple hours? Just a couple hours, that's all he wanted to finalize everything. Couldn't she meet him halfway on anything? Anger crashed over him anew, anger and frustration; how many times did he have to ask her to trust him? It had only been three days since Christmas! It wasn't as though they had been here for weeks and he left her hanging the whole time. He told her she would know everything if she would only trust him to take care of a few things first and she couldn't even do that! He had told her that there were lives on the line, people who were depending on him to complete this. Fuck! If she didn't deserve what he had planned for her… Every time he started to think he was being cruel to think about doing this to her. No, she really did have this coming. Tossing the rest of the cigarette into the fireplace and headed upstairs, taking them two at a time, leaving a trail of obscenities in English and French. Pushing through the door of her room, he looked around for her; it was completely still save for the crackling of the fire on the hearth… and a distant scraping. He looked around, trying to ascertain where the noise was coming from. A flicker of movement caught his peripheral and he whipped his head in the direction in time to see the edge of the tapestry flap slightly, the edge scrape against the wooden floor as it was pushed by an unseen draft. That could only mean that the door behind it was open. He had reinforced that door, how the hell had she managed to get past it again?! Tossing the tapestry aside, Remy scowled at the open door, the padlock discarded on the floor and made his way into the drafty corridors. He thought of calling out to her, yelling at her but then he thought better of it; that would only give her a chance to try and run back to her room. No, he wanted to catch her in the act. Yes, he was aware that he was treating her like a naughty child but all he had asked for was a little trust. That's all he had ever asked her for. Just like before she left four years ago, all he had asked was to trust in him, trust in what they had and what they could be together and she couldn't do it. She couldn't just trust him and stay put.

Somewhere outside the corridor, he could hear a clock strike midnight and the corresponding twelve gongs. Literally, one more day. Quiet as a snowfall, Remy made his way toward Olivia's old chamber, the only other way out of these old corridors was through there so she had to be headed that way. He could swear the temperature just dropped about twenty degrees as he entered the chamber and found her there. Despite his anger, his breath caught in his throat as he came upon her, standing with her back to him, gazing out the window and bathed in moonlight. She still wore that dress and the silvery glow made her pale skin look otherworldly; his fingers ached to touch it. He wanted to run his hands over those beautiful shoulders and through her hair. She looked like something out of an ancient painting or carving of one of the moon goddesses; always chaste and virginal, all clad in white. He came to a stop a few feet away, not trusting himself to move much closer and not touch her. He tried to hold onto the anger he felt for her just a few moments ago. "All I asked was fr' y' to trust me," he said, gruffly.

"And I told her she shouldn't."

That voice. "No!" Gambit breathed, as dread washed over him.

"Did you really think I would allow this to happen again?" She turned to face him, those eyes were not Rogue's eyes. The same color as the Dresden but they glowed with terrible power. Her lips moved, Rogue's beautiful, honeyed lips but the voice was not Rogue's.

"Olivia."

"Lady Olivia. They may have taken everything else but leave me with my title at least," the low, venomous voice leaked from her lips and swirled around him like smoke.

"You don' need t' do dis," Remy told her, willing Rogue to fight the control the ancient mutant had over her. "We were tryin' t' help-"

"Help?!" The rage in her voice seemed to swirl around them and made it feel as though it were sucking up all the oxygen in the room. "You were going to do the exact same thing! Do not insult me by denying that you intended to sacrifice her! To him! Just as I was before! You and those two traitors with you!"

"No! I mean, it wasn't like that-"

"Still you insult me with lies!" The woman before him screeched, stabbing the air in front of him with Rogue's slender finger and balling her small hands into tight fists. Her fury was charging the atmosphere, he could almost see it a blaze and he had to back up a few steps as it was almost too painful to breathe the air around her. She was way more powerful than they thought, they weren't prepared for this. Her voice came again, like the hiss of a serpent. "You make me the villain when it was I who was betrayed! It was I who was sacrificed for his selfish desires! And now you will do the same to her! Just like Antoine. All of his pretty words and declarations of love were merely a means to an end. I was a means to an end. I will make sure she knows everything."

"You don' understand," Remy wasn't really sure just how he was going to proceed. He hadn't anticipated this. How the hell did she get this powerful? She had never been able to break free of the astrial plane for this long… Rogue… Was she drawing strength from Rogue's powers? Or even Rogue herself? The device in the necklace was enough to dampen Rogue's powers so how was Olivia using her now that she was possessing Rogue? He had to get her out of there somehow. "You don' understand what happened then. Your powers, what dey did den, what dey're still doin' now! I'm tryin' to set everythin' right! Rogue! Chere, if y' can hear me, help me! Make her listen! She's goin' t' hurt a lotta people! Please, darlin' ya gotta make her stop!"

As he was speaking, the air became thicker and sharper and heavier. He was forced down to his knees and each breath he took was like feeling an infinite number of tiny needles slicing through his lungs. Gasping, fighting for air, Gambit couched and flecks of blood spattered the floor. Even as he tried not to breathe in, his lungs fought for fresh air and they finally won out, taking another gasp. It took him a few moments to realize that the stabbing pain was lessoning and the air was clearing. On his hands and knees, he was attempting to take in more air as dark spots danced before his eyes, threatening him with unconsciousness. Lifting his head, he searched her face for the reason behind her allowing him to breathe again. He saw only frustration and confusion along with unadulterated rage marring Rogue's features. She reached out a hand toward him, as if she were clawing at him but couldn't reach him; she was desperately trying to kill him. Something flickered in her eyes and for a moment, he saw it, the color…

"Rogue!" Remy's voice was horse, barely audible from injury and strain. He raised a hand towards her, reaching for her.

"Remy?" Her voice sounded scared and far away as she gazed down at him in horror. Balling her fists, she wrapped her arms around her body and squeezed her eyes shut. It was as if she were locking herself inside her own body. The air around them was nearly back to normal and Remy collapsed, his strength nearly depleted, all he could do was watch as Rogue waged a battle within herself. Gambit wasn't sure whether it had been minutes or hours but he saw Rogue begin to tremble as she fell to her knees. Raising her head, she gave a bloodcurdling shriek that didn't even sound like a human was capable of creating it. With a great shuddering effort, at least one entity was forced from the woman's body and it left with a flash of green light. Unable to stay upright, Rogue teetered once on her knees before crashing forward to the floorboards below.

She was only a couple feet away from him but it seemed like miles. Garnering every ounce of strength he had left, his muscles protesting vehemently, Remy dragged himself close enough to touch her, to pull her into his arms and hope against hope that it was Olivia who had been dispelled on not his Rogue. Drawing ragged breaths, he couldn't even speak but he forced his arms around her and buried his face into her hair, breathing in her scent. She was warm, trembling slightly but her heart was beating and she was still alive; he could feel shallow breaths on his neck and he rejoiced. Presently he felt her stir and she opened her eyes. Green, darker than any emerald and more brilliant than the Dresden could ever be. His Rogue. She struggled to keep her lids open as she stared into his eyes, into his very soul it seemed and with great effort, she managed to speak: "You're gonna kill me?" With that great effort, the last of her strength was spent; her lids fluttered closed and she slipped into a purely exhausted sleep.

(EEP!)