Disclaimer: All characters belong to Marvel Comics except Kenny Cruz and Ronald "Ro Joe" Johnson".

Summary: This is a continuation of Interactions, but it can be read on its own. If you haven't read Interactions, everything of importance will be explained as this story progresses.

The X-Men's four week vacation is winding down and the incidences of the first week of their time off (as read in Interactions) is still having an impact on the team.

This story will have plots involving Bobby, Betsy, Ororo, Jean, Logan Scott, Xavier and others, but will mostly evolve around Remy and Rogue ;o)

Interplay: The way (people) react with one another and have an effect on one another.

Interplay

Part 1

Chapter 1

Back to School

(The Full Cast)

The X-Men sat silently in the War Room, having been summoned by Xavier more than an hour before. They listened intently as the professor reached the conclusion of his debriefing on his trip to Shi'ar. All eyes were focused on the back and forth motion of Xavier as he moved from the lecture podium to the large computer screen assisting his speech. All eyes were focused, all except for one.

Borin'! Remy fought the urge to yawn as he sunk lower into his seat. He was dressed in his standard X-Men uniform, as they all were due to War Room policy, never mind the fact they were still officially on vacation.

Remy glanced up at the large view screen as Xavier rambled on. He so wished the still pictures were animated–maybe then he would start paying attention; however, right now they were on vacation and use to slacking off.

Yawn!

Remy looked to his left. It was Bobby. He could tell the Iceman was trying to yawn as quietly as possible, but being so close, the thief was able to pick up on it.

Poor, Bobby. Out of everyone here, he hasn't been makin' de best of his vacation. He watched as Bobby started to nod off, then woke up after his head dropped too far. I can't believe de stuff he's lettin' mess wit' his sleep.

Remy leaned into the table so he could see past Bobby to the guy propped up at the front of the long table. He shook his head ruefully at the sight of Cyclops jotting down notes from the professor's speech on his computer pad. If Remy had witnessed that very scene four weeks prior, his stomach would have turned; however, so much things have happened in that period of time, one of them being the beginnings of a real friendship between the leader and the thief.

Sure Scott can be a pain when he's in leader mode, but I found out he's an okay guy once he has the time t' relax. Smiling to himself, he mused, Besides, anyone dat can recognize true genius in an ol' black and white tv show, is all right wit' me. Remy made a mental note to return The 3 Stooges DVD Scott had lent him a couple nights before. He had wanted to hand deliver it back to Scott at the boathouse, but decided against it because he didn't want to bump into...

"Yes, Jean?" The professor called, seeing her raised hand.

Jean asking Xavier some nonsensical question gave Remy the perfect excuse to look her over. She was a beautiful green eyed red head–one of the few he had seen without freckles. Over the past three weeks, she had gone out of her way to track him down, though he had been doing an excellent job of keeping her at bay.

He grinned inwardly, wondering if he could ever remember another time where he deliberately avoided one-on-one time with a sexy lady.

I guess dis is a first, he concluded, too deep in thought to realize Jean had long ago finished asking her question and turned her head to him, silently inquiring about his stare.

She smiled hopefully at him, her wide eyes causing her brows to rise, but soon her smile turned into a frown as he abruptly turned his head to the front of the room.

I guess he's still mad at me, she thought sadly. Jean sat up straight and flipped her hair behind her shoulders, refusing to let his reaction get her down. She remained, optimistic, hoping he would soon grow tired of whatever game he was playing with her...this time.

Remy's eyes soon settled on his dearest friend Ororo. She too was engulfed with Xavier, following his every movement with her icy blue eyes.

Storm had been a couple of weeks off a hurtful breakup and he had been spending whatever time he could helping her keep her mind off of it. He wanted so desperately to make up for not really being there for her when she was falling in love.

Maybe den I could have stopped it, he thought remorseful, wishing she would never have to experience that kind of pain.

Breakin' up wit' someone ya were in love wit' is bad enough, but when ya still have t' see his face every day...

He looked over to Logan, who seem more interested with fiddling with the toothpick in his mouth than with anything Xavier had to say.

Remy had long ago figured Ororo was dating Logan–but by the time he had figured it out, she had already experienced her heartbreak. I guess I was too busy dealin' wit' Rogue and de bracelet dat I totally missed all de obvious signs.

Even so, he was willing to let the entire issue drop, seeing as though the former couple had already broke up and she seemed to be moving on with her life. He even maintained his friendship with Logan, never bringing up the topic, both doing an excellent job of ignoring the elephant in the room.

And I'll still be cool wit' Wolverine, forgettin' 'bout how much he hurt Stormy–she would wan' dat of me. Tapping his finger anxiously on the table, he continued, Jus' as long as he keeps his distance from her, we'll have no problems...

"And that concludes the summary of my adventures in Shi'ar," Xavier finished as he looked away from the view screen and towards the X-Men.

Finally! Remy thought as he cracked his fingers, long ago needing to get up and stretch his muscles. He was just about to ease out of his chair when Xavier continued...

"Now, on to some more pressing matters concerning our faulty security system..."

Merde! He wanted to pound on the table to help release all his pent up energy, but held back, not wanting to draw the professor's disapproving glare. Instead, he clenched his jaw muscles and curled his fingers into a fist. His eyes then connected with Rogue, who noticed his irritated expression and giggled at him. She playfully pointed her index finger to her temple, imitating a gun, and pulled the trigger.

All his frustrations melted away as he quietly chuckled with her–his smile fading when she again focused on the professor.

It's been a month since Rogue and I promised t' take our relationship one say at a time and I swear it's been de best month of my life, he thought refusing to acknowledge his his exaggeration. Wit'out de pressure of de bracelet dat's been locked away from us, we've actually managed t' focus on progressin' our relationship. Everyt'ing has been perfect except for...

His train of thought stopped as he caught a movement out of the corner of his eye.

...De Ninja Assassin. His eyes drifted over to his right to steal a quick glimpse of his mortal enemy, looking studious as she watched the professor, sitting straight in her chair. She didn't fool him.

Apparently, she and Rogue have become de best of friends. How de fuck did dat happen? It would be one thing if he thought Betsy was only using Rogue to get to him–but he could feel her–at one time she felt nothing for Rogue, now he could feel her fondness for the Southern Belle.

Remy decided to put the thought to rest as he reached in his trench coat for a note pad and pen. He was always one to stick to the old ways, never trusting computers enough to write anything of secrecy on them. Computers were never 100 safe, he had broken into too many of them to think otherwise.

The small notepad was filled with pages–and yet he kept it for emergencies only, never liking to leave a paper trail–however, the pounding of his heart caused him to slip and make an exception to his rule.

He began to write a quick note in neat handwriting. Once he was done, he rolled the note into a small ball and prepared to flick it across the table.

Rogue was watching the professor speak, but was not listening to a word he was saying. Her perfect pose and alert position was only a cover for the back and forth conversation in her mind with her new best friend.

...No, yah didn't! She yelled mentally in response to a funny story Betsy had told her.

Yes, I did, Betsy replied as they both silently laughed together.

Oh, Ah believe yah, Rogue relented, shaking her head, Only yah have the nerve tah say somethang so... her thoughts jolted to a halt as a paper ball hit her gloved hand. Oh look, she thought as she slowly unfolded the paper, trying not to draw too much attention to her.

Betsy took her eyes off the professor for two seconds just to get a visual on what Rogue was referring to.

Rogue read the note mentally to Betsy, 'Do yah lahk meh?' Underneath the question was a box marked 'yes' and another marked 'no'. 'Check one and write back,' Rogue finished reading and then gushed to her friend, Oh how cute! This is almost exactly lakh the note Jason Carter gave to me in the 2nd grade after Ah helped him tie his laces.

Betsy rolled her eyes. So am I to assume you assisted Gambit with the same plight?

Ha-ha! She laughed sarcastically. Making sure Xavier wasn't watching her, she checked one of the boxes, scribbled a return message and flicked the note back to Remy.

Remy unfolded the ball and was delighted to see the box marked 'yes' checked three times in dark pen. His eyes scanned the lower half of the paper where his girlfriend wrote:

I can't wait until this stupid meeting is over so we can spend some time together.

x o x o x - Rogue!

He looked up from the note and gave her a wink as she smiled warmly. Her smile soon turned into a pout as she watched him stuff the paper in his mouth and begin to chew, swallowing any evidence of their loving exchange. He saw the hint of sadness in her eyes and knew exactly what she was feeling.

She always complains dat I don't write her love letters. He snickered to herself. I'm sure if I did she would keep everyt'ing stashed in some kind of girlish love box along wit' clippings of my hair. Sure, de idea seems flattering now dat we are together and everyt'ing is goin' great, but as soon as de tide turns, she will have everyt'ing she needs for a voodoo curse. He chuckled to himself, realizing the years of superstitious warnings from his Tante still had an effect on him.

And still, he couldn't help but sneak another peak at his love and notice how she gently bit the bottom of her lip, her mind seemed to have drifted elsewhere. At that moment a rush of emotions swept over him and he knew that he had to put a smile back on her face. He blindly reached for the pen and before he thought better of it, he the put pen to paper and wrote feverishly. Once he was finished he again rolled the paper into a ball–a much bigger ball than before–and flicked it in Rogue's direction.

The paper ball lounged forward, but suddenly took an awkward turn and headed in a diagonal direction, hitting Logan on the wrist.

Shit! Remy thought to himself in disbelief. How is dat even possible? It goes completely against de laws of physics, not to mention de laws of pool. His eyes immediately zeroed in on the telekinetic Psylocke, who was smiling innocently.

"What?" She mouthed the word.

He narrowed his eyes accusingly at her, but said nothing.

Meanwhile down the long table, Logan opened the note that seemed to have come out of nowhere. Well, looky here. Chewing on the toothpick in his mouth, he read silently:

Staring at you now, silently watching the professor, I am at a lost for words and thank God that my pen can convey what my mouth cannot...

Logan stopped reading the note, his mind racing thinking about the only person who would have sent it to him, even though it seemed impossible. Could it be? He continued reading:

...It's only a matter of time before I can finally touch your smooth skin, kiss your soft lips...

'Smooth'...'soft'? That don't sound right. His eyes skimmed over to the end of the note; it was signed :

Remy

Logan snarled and looked down the table to the man he called Gumbo. Remy had a teasing smile on his face and wiggled his eyebrows playfully as Logan crushed the paper with his large hands. He was clearly not amused with the thief's antics.

Again Bobby let out a yawn, capturing Remy's attention. I don't t'ink I've seen dis guy sleep a wink in de las' couple of weeks or so...

Whack!

A rolled up paper ball smacked Remy on the side of the face, courtesy of the Wolverine.

Remy snickered, garnering no resentment toward his fellow teammate. He deserved to have that mildly embarrassing incident happen to him to remind him of why he never liked writing personal or incriminating things down on paper. Leave it t' my feelin's for Rogue, causin' me t' do stupid t'ings. Shaking his head, he added, Can't believe I actually signed my name.

He held the paper ball in his hand and carefully released his kinetic energy, relishing in the sensation that flowed throughout his body–happy to find at least some relief from so much stored energy. Not too much, not too little; just enough so that the paper made a soft popping noise and exploded into nothingness.

Xavier looked up from his papers, distracted by the foreign sound.

The Cajun paused momentarily until the professor continued on with his report. Once the situation was clear, he again looked at his notepad. Because of his empathy, he knew Xavier was sucking the life out of the room. The only person he could tell was not feeling drained was Scott, which was to be expected.

Ol' Cyke mus' be on cloud nine now dat his papa's back safe and sound. Remy didn't care about Scott's upbeat demeanor; he was determined to return everyone back to the relaxed atmosphere they had enjoyed over the last couple of weeks with the professor away.

In a nondescript style of handwriting, he jotted down a simple note, trying to contain his laughter while doing so. He folded the paper once diagonally and once horizontally and slipped it over to the drowsy person to his left, who he nudged awake with an elbow tap to the ribs.

Bobby's eyes opened wider as he jerked forward in response to Remy and saw the folded paper in front of him. He immediately smiled, turning to Remy who nodded at him. Finally, somebody's up to some shit! Bobby thought happily as he opened the note, making sure Xavier's back was turned when he did so.

Bobby opened his mouth wide with an exaggerated silent laughter after reading the paper and didn't waste anytime folding it back up and shooting it diagonally across the table to Logan.

The older man looked cautiously at the note before him, not wanting to be the fool a second time. Seems like Gumbo is achin' for me t' punch him in the face. However, he then realized Bobby was the one who gave him the letter and urged him to open it with a jerk of his head. Logan read the note and snorted as Rogue peered over his shoulder wanting to know what he was reading.

Logan handed her the note so she could get a better look. Before her giggles could escape her lips, she covered her mouth with her hand. Oh mah Gawd!

What is it? Betsy asked, opening back up their mental line of communication because of Rogue's reaction.

Rogue chucked the paper across the table to Betsy who read it and snickered. Without looking at Rogue, she asked, Who sent this?

Ah don't know. Rogue was still laughing in her mind. Ah got it from Logan.

No way Logan wrote this, she said shaking her head. It's got to be Bobby.

Or Remy, Rogue added, finally looking down the table to her boyfriend who, all of a sudden, seemed to be so very interested in Xavier's boring lecture.

Jus' look at him. Suddenly he's so into the professah's speech. The perfect cover. She stared at Remy hard, wanting him to make eye contact with her, but he ignored her. The guilty bastard won't even look at meh, she thought with a smirk. Though the writin' is different than what he sent meh before.

Betsy folded the note and with her telekinetic powers, she channeled it toward Jean and watched as the redhead opened the note and placed her hand on her cheek, her mouth opened wide in the shape of an 'O'.

Scott noticed Jean's reaction which distracted him from listening to what was being said. What's the matter? He asked with concern through their open metal link.

You've got to read this, she said as she shot the note toward him with her mind. She watched as he reached for the note before adding, It's so funny!

Her words caused him to stop and re-fold the note. Is this one of Bobby's pranks?

I don't know, giving it more thought, she said, it does fit his M.O.

He shook his head. It must be–Bobby's finally managed to wake up and instead of listening, he's playing games. We are in a very important meeting, this isn't the time or place for him to be messing around.

Oh, sweety, it's only a joke.

He wasn't paying her any mind as he took the note and tried to pass it back to Bobby, who was sitting to his right.

Bobby saw what he was trying to do and shook his head no.

Again, Scott tried to shove the paper into Bobby hands as the younger man waved him off still shaking his head. Fortunately for him, he was in a position to see what Scott could not--and it wasn't pretty.

"Cyclops!"

Scott's body froze at the sound of Xavier's voice. Swallowing hard, he tried to cover the crumpled paper in his hand as he turned around in his seat to face him. "Yes, sir?"

The professor had been watching as Scott was forcing the note in Bobby's hands even though Bobby clearly wanted no part of it. "Is there a reason why you insist on passing notes during an important debriefing?"

Shit! Scott thought over many responses before realizing there was no right answer. "No, sir."

Xavier straightened up in his wheelchair and folded his fingers together, resting them on his lap. "Since you seem to be treating the War Room as if it were Junior High, I guess I should treat you as if you were a young teen." He stretched out his hand toward Scott. "Stand up and share your message with the entire room, since it's so important and cannot wait until dismissal."

Stifled sounds of laughter could be heard.

Remy sank lower into his seat as Rogue shot daggers at him. It was clear to him that she wanted him to jump up and confess to penning the note, saving Scott from certain humiliation. But he avoided her glare. Mon pere didn't raise no fool.

What the fuck did these guys get me into? Scott unsurely stood up taking a deep breath. He looked over to Xavier, who urged him to begin reading with a slight nod of his head. Scott looked down at the page and read the words out loud for the first time.

" 'Maybe it's just me, but Xavier's glistening, shriveled, bald head reminds me of my...left testicle.' " Scott looked toward his team for any kind of support, instead they lowered their heads. It seemed as if they were clearly enjoying leaving him hung out to dry.

Looking back over to Xavier, he concluded, "I guess it is just me." He gave a nervous laugh.

"Seems so," he responded unamused. I think he's had enough. Xavier gestured for him to sit down. "Thank you for sharing that clearly important antidote with us," he added dryly.

He gave a quick nod of his head and returned to his seat. "You're welcome, sir." Scott gave a quick look to his mates, ready to glare at them (even though he had on shades), but they all looked elsewhere, not giving him an opening to vent. He could tell even his wife was trying to hold in her laughter, her face becoming red from her efforts.

The professor looked toward his pupils. "Now that I have finally managed to capture everyone's attention, we can move on to other business.

"Once again, I would like to thank everyone for allowing me one night to my lonesome after I returned from Shi'ar space to gather my thoughts..." With a raised brow, he added, "...And to recover from jet lag."

The team laughed at his little joke.

"Good one, sir," Bobby called out, seemingly impressed–he always was anytime the professor made a joke.

"Thank you." He smiled proudly having been complimented by the resident comedian. "Now that I am well rested, I can go over the latest development in World News." He took a deep breath. "It seems Magneto has managed to put himself in the heat of controversy."

It was ever so slightly, but even out of the corner of his eye, Remy noticed the jerk of Rogue's body at the mention of Magneto's name and hated that the Master of Magnetism could still get a rise out of her.

Raising a hand, Ororo was called on to speak. "Does this have anything to do with Ronald Joe Johnson being wanted for the murder of 2 police officers?"

"That's precisely it," Xavier answered. "The United States government has reason to suspect Johnson was exported to the new Asteroid M almost a month ago."

"What does Magneto have to say about it?" Jean asked.

"He has not confirmed the suspicions," the professor then added remorsefully, "yet he has not denied them either."

Remy knew that game well. "He's toyin' wit' de government," he mentioned as an aside.

Xavier took notice of Remy at the back of the room, his thought process interrupted by the sight of the thief. Gambit should know what he is talking about, having played many games before...and still. "It seems like it," he finally responded. "But if Johnson is on Asteroid M, I think it's safe to assume Magneto will not willingly extradite him."

"If that's true, Magneto is in the wrong," Rogue spoke out. "Ah mean, Ah've been watchin' all the stories on the news regardin' this Ro Joe guy. Officer Milton left behind a pregnant wife and a three year old son. Officer Tomken had a daughter that was gettin' ready tah go tah college." She was sadden by the entire story. "He deserves tah go tah jail."

Remy couldn't bite his tongue any longer. "He deserves a fair trial. De media's been spinnin' dis story so much dat now everybody t'inks he's guilty wit'out knowin' de facts."

Rogue wasn't impressed. "Two dead bodies are the only facts Ah need."

The thief shook his head. "There's no way Ro Joe's goin' t' get 12 Jurors of his peers."

"Ya seem a lil' too involved," Logan injected, taking the toothpick out his mouth. "Do ya know the kid?"

For a spit second it seemed as if the entire team held their breath as they waited for the thief's response.

Remy cracked a smile, finding the team's suspicion of him, in that moment, quite humorous. "Never met him before," he answered truthfully. Officer Tomken on de other hand...

I know dat cop was up t' shit. He was dat tiny percent of de NYPD dat wasn't above dabblin' in a lil' crime t' line his pocket wit' cash. I had t' deal wit' him on many occasions. He was one of those guys dat I always had t' keep my shades on around. He hated mutants wit' a passion so much so, I can wait t' hear Ro Joe's side of de story before I can condemn him.

"Whatever the case," Xavier continued, "I've been called to act as a go-between for the government and Magneto. We've still haven't discussed anything with Magneto yet, he has been extremely busy with other things I have heard, still I will be spending most of my days trying to settle this problem." Xavier moved from the podium to the front of the room. "Which is why I am asking you all to bare with me. Yes, technically we are sill on vacation, but I have a feeling we may be called into action if anything goes aery. I image the next couple of days will be unpredictable. I'm asking you all to stay on at the mansion and to be prepared."

Xavier observed as his entire team nodded their head in acceptance of what laid ahead, all except for one.

The Beginning of the End

(Magneto)

Hundreds of miles high into the darkness of space, the second edition of Asteroid M hovered by its lonesome. The Asteroid was suppose to be a safe haven for all mutants who were willing to leave the old world for a promising future lead by the one known as Magneto.

Eric stood tall in front of six of his best men in the docking port. The few had been hand picked from the many by Eric. Each mutant had an ability the leader needed in order to accomplish his goal.

Eric stood beforehis men with hisfingers foldedbehind his back. "Is everyone prepared for our return to earth?"

The men of varying height and mutations nodded their heads, while some answered in the form of a grunt.

"You all must remember this is an extremely dangerous mission and must be completed successfully if we are to maintain our form of life here on Asteroid M..."

"Magneto!"

His lecture was cut short as Kenny Cruz sprinted into the room, stopping short in front of him. He had gotten to know Kenny over the past couple of weeks and his fondness for the young man was the only reason why he did not lash out in anger of being interrupted. With a controlled tone of voice, he said, "I assume this is urgent because we are about to leave on an important mission."

With a slight bow of his head, he replied, "Yes, it is." He paused a moment to catch his breath."Just wanted to let you know that the Pentagon is again issuing an opening for a discussion."

That is not of importance. Eric turned away from his most trusted handler as he picked up his helmet. "I have already let them know I have no such interest."

"Yes, I'm aware," he said quickly, realizing that Eric was about to dismiss him. "But the Pentagon wanted to make it known the talks would be lead by someone named Charles Xavier."

His brow perked with interest at the mention of an old friend. "Xavier?" It has been awhile. Before he could reflect on the last time he had seen Xavier and the situation behind it, he looked back at Kenny. "As much as some time with Xavier is indeed tempting, I'll have to decline."

He scratched his blond hair. "So, I should let them know you are not interested?"

"No." Proceeding to walk toward the pods, trailed by his men, he called out, "Tell them I need some time to think it over."

Kenny nodded in response as Eric and his group of six prepared to leave the serenity of Asteroid M for the uncertainty of Earth.

xxxxxx

Author's Note: Don't worry, in keeping with how Interaction was written, there won't be much written about Magneto and the X-Men fighting bad guys. The last scene was just a set-up for something later down the line.

Now I'm off to finish the next chapter of Stolen (which is one not to be missed), but don't be surprised if I get the epilogue of New Addition up before it.

Please review and let me know what you think so far.

Next Time: Picks up where we left with the X-Men. See how the relationships have changed over the past 3 weeks.