Title: Never Again
Author: Morgana (morganalebeau@yahoo.com)
Website: http://www.oocities.org/morganalebeau/
________________________________________________________
Never Again 5
By Morgana
Jean startled as Bobby released a choked scream. She quickly hurried over to his side. "Bobby, everything's all right. You're back at the mansion." Bobby sat upright and stared blindly at her. Worried, Jean frowned. "Bobby? Bobby?" Suddenly Bobby's eyes cracked and he noticed her. His hands grabbed hers and held her close.
"Jean, Sinister's got Remy. He hurt him... I need to go back! What am I doing here? I have to go back and help Remy!"
Jean forced herself to remain calm. Bobby was raving and his expression was wild. "Bobby, calm down or I have to administer a sedative."
Bobby glared at her, then swung his feet on to the floor. He released her hands and got to his feet. "I have to go back!"
Jean followed him, while mentally updating the professor. Charles reacted at once, promising her that he was already on his way to the medlab. "Bobby, please stay and calm down."
"You don't understand! He was hurt, bleeding! Sinister's gonna break and eventually kill him!" Bobby had reached the doorway and wanted to step in to the corridor when the professor appeared.
"Bobby, come with me and we'll talk. We'll find a way to help Remy." Charles extended his head. "Robert, trust me. We'll do this together."
Bobby stared at the extended hand. "We don't have time to talk, sir."
"First we need a plan and you help us form one. Come with me, Bobby, talk to me and we'll find a way to help Remy." Charles nodded encouragingly.
Bobby sighed. The professor was right. He didn't even know how to get to Sinister. "Fine, we'll talk, but then we're going in and we'll get Remy out."
"I promise," said Charles sincerely.
Bobby nodded his head and followed Charles to his study. Sinister, I'm gonna ice you up and shatter your form in to a million pieces.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Bobby?" Charles signaled Bobby to sit down. "Tell me what happened." He pressed a shot of bourbon in the younger man's hand, and Bobby quickly drowned it.
"It was horrible," whispered Bobby upset. He was staring at the wall and his hands shook. Charles quickly grabbed the glass before it could drop on the floor. Bobby finally made eye contact. "I heard him scream."
"Scream?" Charles carefully scanned Bobby's mind, making sure his student didn't notice it. He knew what had happened in Sinister's lab before Bobby told him and he felt shocked.
"Sinister threatened he would hurt Hank and me if Remy didn't comply. He wanted Remy to come to him willingly, but... Remy only did it to save our lives. I can't believe Remy did that!" Tears slowly rolled down his face. "I mean, I don't know what I would have done if our situations had been reversed. I don't know if I could have done that to buy my team mates' freedom."
Charles nodded and rested a hand on Bobby's shoulder, reassuringly rubbing it. "Remy was in a vulnerable state and Sinister used that to his advantage. We can't change what happened, no matter how much we want to, but we can concentrate on locating him and getting him out. When we get him back, he's going to need your support."
"And the team's." Bobby looked questioningly at the professor. "Hank doesn't know what happened to Remy, and none of the others do. I wanna keep it that way."
Charles agreed. "We'll tell them Remy got hurt, no more."
Bobby sighed relieved. "And now what?"
"Now I'm going to use Cerebro to locate Sinister and then we're getting Remy back."
Bobby abruptly rose to his feet. "No offense, sir, but I need some fresh air. I feel... trapped."
"That's understandable. Go for a walk, but don't stray too far."
Bobby nodded. "Thanks, sir." He quickly fled the study. He needed to be alone with his thoughts right now. Not bothering with putting on a coat, he ran in to the dark night. It happened involuntarily, changing to ice. Using an ice slide, he headed for the lake, hoping no one was out there.
Once he arrived at the lake he shifted back, sat down and stared at the dark sky and crescent moon. He was going up against Sinister, one of their most powerful enemies and he had vowed to take down the monster. As long as Sinister lived, Remy was in danger. But how was he going to eliminate Sinister? The man was a powerful mutant and no one had ever succeeded in killing him. Scott's optic blast hurt Sinister, but couldn't kill him, so how was he going to pull off the impossible?
When Emma Frost had taken over she had taken his power to a whole new level. She had done things he had never believed possible. He had truly been a force of nature, but could he ever push himself like that? When it came down to trying new things, he was a coward, but now Remy's life was at stake and maybe he didn't have a choice.
"Hey, Drake, what are ya doin' out here?"
Bobby spun around, almost expecting Sinister to step out of a tesseract, but it was only Logan. "Just leave me alone. I'm not in the mood for company." He sat back down again, glaring at the lake.
Logan recognized Bobby's mood, having suffered it frequently as well. "Ya wanna kill the bastard."
"Oh yeah, you have no idea." Bobby's eyes fastened on Logan. "I think I finally understand what going feral is all about. I want to kill him with my bare hands for hurting Remy."
Logan listened up. He didn't know what had happened and Charles had refused to tell him. "What did Sinister do?"
But Bobby shook his head. "Hurt Remy, hurt him bad." Remy wouldn't appreciate it if everyone knew what had happened in the lab.
"So what are ya gonna do now, bub?" Logan sat on his heels beside Bobby. "Ya can count on me. I wanted some piece of the bastard for some time now. Wanna find out if his armor can deal with my claws." He laughed menacingly.
"Sinister's mine, Logan. Don't get in the way."
Bobby's determination impressed Logan, but he seriously doubted Drake could it pull it off. Bobby wasn't a killer and he certainly wasn't strong enough to take on someone of Sinister's caliber. "I ain't stoppin' ya, Drake, but think a moment about what yer gonna do. Yer gonna take a life, no matter how evil Sinister is, it'll be murder."
"I don't fucking care!" His anger had a tight hold on him. "I just gotta stop him from hurting Remy ever again!"
Logan realized that he wouldn't get through to Bobby until the younger man had settled down. Instead of talking, he offered Drake his silent company. For the next hour, they stared at the lake, both men sorting out their thoughts and emotions.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Remy angrily paced his room. He had woken up here a few minutes ago, finding that the pain which tormented his lower body was gone completely. Sinister had probably taken care of the damage he had done. That gave him an edge. He was mobile again, alert and ready to find a way out. Sinister had made one other mistake; Sinister hadn't collared him. He could blast the door and fight himself a way out, but... Were Bobby and Hank still at the base? If they were he had to lay low for a while and appease Sinister. First he had to know if Sinister had send them back, only then could he take action.
Pacing fast, he tried hard to forget what Sinister had done to him. Taking on Nathan's appearance had confronted him with the fact that Sinister had fooled him for years. He had really loved Nathan and had thought that it was mutual. What a fool he had been! Sinister had played him back then and now once again. He hadn't even put up a fight!
Self hate crept up on him and he stared at his arm. Apparently Sinister had also take care of the burn on his arm. Angrily, his kinetic energy began to burn in his fingertips and he placed them against his thigh, hoping finding the burns there would put Sinister off. Damn it, the bastard hadn't given him any clothes either, making him feel even more vulnerable.
He hissed as the stench of burned flesh flowed in to the air. He pulled back his hand, staring at the five burns left behind on his thigh. The pain was a welcome distraction, taking his mind off Sinister, Bobby and Hank. There was too much pain to worry about his enemy and his friends.
The burns looked ugly and would grow infected without the proper care, but Remy didn't care right now. He just wanted to forget. Laying down on the cold floor, he curled up, letting oblivion flow over him.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"LeBeau! What did you do now?" Worried, Sinister knelt next to Remy's sleeping form. This wasn't going according to plan. He had hoped to seduce LeBeau, to win his affection and dedication, to re-erect the love they had shared years ago. The burns still felt warm to his touch and he stood back, watching Remy.
The love they had shared had been special to him. Time and time again he had tried to win Remy over, but the Cajun had spoken of betrayal and dismissed him. Remy's rejection had driven him to make insane plans. The Massacre had been one of them. Why had the police found Remy first? He had wanted to nurse the Cajun back to health, to earn his eternal gratitude, but it had never happened.
Then he had found Remy at Antarctica, deserted, starving, dying and he had taken Remy with him. He had nursed him back to health, had enjoyed Remy's presence for two months. Then Remy had managed to flee. That had made him mad as hell. The Cajun was as elusive as quicksand!
"What do I have to do to win your love?" He regretted going so fast when they had made love, but an animalistic urge had taken over. He had needed to claim Remy, to prove his dominance, but in the process he had only hurt the Cajun. Looking at it in retrospect, he realized that Remy's pain and fear had slipped in to his mind, but he had been too eager to make love to allow those feelings to register.
"I didn't want it to be like this." Remy LeBeau... The empath had stolen his heart years ago. Through the empathy his feelings had awakened again and he had fallen madly in love with the Cajun. He had realized that Remy would never accept someone like Sinister and he had created Nathan. For a short time he had been happy. He had created an illusion, had started to live the life of a mortal human, just to please Remy.
But in the end everything had fallen apart. Remy had found out that he had been lying and the Cajun, deeply hurt, had left. Then he had made it worse by staging the Massacre. Oh, he had made plenty of mistakes, but always had love for Remy guided his actions. Now he had even taken his refuge to threatening Remy's friends and new lover.
He frowned, feeling the rage return. Finding out that Remy and Drake were a couple now had started the rage, had made him scheme again. That Dark Beast had already infiltrated the mansion had served him well. He had given Dark Beast false DNA samples, telling him they belonged to Remy LeBeau. A smile stole on to his face. Did Dark Beast really think he would hand over LeBeau's DNA? Never. He wouldn't let Dark Beast pollute the gene poll with his petty experiments!
Remy stirred and Sinister was jolted in to action. "Why the floor, Remy? There's a perfectly good bed in the corner." He picked up Remy, who continued to sleep, and deposited the Cajun on the bed, covering him with warm blankets. Thoughtfully he remained standing at the bed, studying Remy further.
Remy was pale and knowing the Cajun had resorted to self mutilation to deal with his problems worried him. Had his actions driven the Cajun over the edge? He sighed. Why was everything this complicated? Because his emotions were back. Numb and without feelings life had been a lot easier on him.
Suddenly Remy's eyes opened and they fastened on him. The empath's feelings were too strong to contain and Remy let some of them slip. Sinister flinched, feeling the depth of Remy's loneliness.
"Did you keep your word? Did you send them back?" Remy moistened his chapped lips. How had he gotten in to this accursed bed? He didn't want to be in it! This was where Sinister had taken him.
"They're back at the mansion. You know I always keep my word." Sinister wanted to push back a stray lock, but saw Remy flinch away from his touch and pulled back.
"And I'll keep mine," whispered Remy. He felt broken, but wasn't ready yet to give up. As long as he was strong enough to move about he would search for a way out, but he wasn't going back to Westchester. He couldn't show his face there ever again now that Bobby and Hank knew. He would find a nice little place where he could settle down, maybe start a new life. But he would miss Bobby greatly.
"Remy..." Sinister sat down on the side of the bed and Remy immediately moved away from him, moving as close to the edge of the bed as possible. "I still love you. I still want you."
"I don't love you... You only used me. That's all you do." Remy bit his bottom lip, uncertain how Sinister would react.
"You love Drake now?" Sinister's red eyes glowed.
Remy swallowed hard. "Oui, and he loves me back. He doesn't play games like you do. You never were honest with me. You let me believe Nathan was real."
"Would you have accepted me as your lover like this?" He pointed at himself.
"I don't know," whispered Remy. "Nathan was handsome, but I didn't love him for his good looks. He was really supportive, gave me all the attention and love I needed. I don't know what would have happened had you shown your real colors."
Remy's emotions started to affect him and Sinister began to feel sorry for the way he had treated the Cajun. "I should apologize for..."
Remy's head jerked back. Sinister wanted to apologize? What the hell?
"I shouldn't have taken you so roughly, but all I could think about was that you were in my bed again. I missed you."
Remy thought he had finally gone insane. "What are you doing?"
Sinister fingered a lock of Remy's hair, finding that the Cajun was trying to get away from his touch... again. "Whenever you're close you confuse me."
Remy arched an eyebrow. Where was this going? He had never seen Sinister this... calm, gentle. Nathan had been like this, but never Sinister! Merde, his head started to spin.
"You're tired. I regret sedating you, but I doubt you would have wanted to go through surgery while awake. I had to put in some stitches, but I'm sure you'll make a full recovery." Remy's confusion washed over him, became his. In the end, he rose abruptly and left the room.
Remy, dazed, stared at the closing door. He didn't know what was going on with the scientist, but it had bought him some time. He pushed himself to his feet, and took the blanket with him. He wasn't comfortable with being naked right now. He doubted Sinister would be back shortly and studied the lock. A small, kinetic charge should do the trick. He placed one finger against the lock and a small explosion rocked the lock, snapping it open. "Bingo..." Remy got to his feet again, pushed the door ajar and stepped in to the corridor. Which way to go? He shrugged, chose the corridor to his right and started walking.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sinister watched Remy on the monitors. The Cajun was heading toward the lab where Dark Beast was working and that urged him in to action. Dark Beast was unpredictable and he didn't want to risk a confrontation. Within a few seconds, he accessed the right corridor. "Remy? Come back here. Don't go there."
Remy spun around, wishing he had something to charge. He looked about, but didn't find anything. Still, his fingers began to glow. "Let me be, Sinister."
"Stop it, Remy. You can't charge anything and you'll end up blowing up yourself. Pull it back." Sinister frowned. Remy's hand continued to glow harder.
"I'd rather blow myself up than be with you!" Sorry, Bobby. Cher, didn't want it to end like this, but I can't stand his touch. If I thought there was still a chance to get back to you, I wouldn't be doing this, but Sinister won't ever let me leave. I'd better end it here, now.
Sinister shuddered. "You'd rather blow yourself up than be with me?"
"Oui! Don't you get it? I hate you! You hurt me and I hate you! All I can think off is getting away from you!"
Sinister swayed on his feet as Remy's hate hit him. The intensity of the emotion baffled him. "You hate me? You loved me once!"
"I didn't love you! I loved an illusion you created!" His hands were starting to hurt. Any moment now his kinetic power would turn on himself, blow him in to a hundred pieces.
Sinister strengthened his shields and managed to push Remy's emotions behind his barriers. Able to think clearly again, he recognized the danger Remy was in. "Pull it back and I'll let you go." He had always thought that if he couldn't have LeBeau, no one should, but... He didn't want Remy dead. Some part of Sinister actually cared.
"You won't. You told me again and again that you wouldn't let me go. Why would I believe you now? Never again, Sinister. You won't use me ever again!" His hands were numb at this point. Pain was traveling up his arms, in to his chest and his heartbeat became irregular. This was it. His body was only seconds away from giving in to the kinetic charge. I'm so sorry, cher, but Bobby, I can't keep doing this. Sinister will never let go. This is my only way out.
"I can't let you do this." Sinister used his telepathic powers to knock Remy out. It worked. The Cajun dropped to the floor with a soft yelp, but to Sinister's horror, the charge continued to build. "What did you do?"
He had learned a lot about Remy and his powers when they had been lovers and there was only one way to save Remy from the pressure building inside him. Sinister quickly knelt beside Remy, grabbed his hands and the charge traveled in to his body, shaking him, nearly knocking him out as well.
The glow died and Remy's skin returned to normal. Sinister swayed on his knees, but held on to consciousness. "Too close, much too close."
He rested for one moment, then picked up Remy and carried him to his room.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Professor? Anything?" Jean looked at him expectedly. She had briefly left the med lab, leaving Warren in charge of Hank's care.
"Nothing." Charles sighed. Even Cerebro hadn't been able to locate Sinister.
Jean felt nervous. "What do we do now? Bobby's very volatile right now and everyone is edgy. The tension in the mansion is oppressive."
Charles nodded. "We can't do anything until we have Sinister's location. Where's Bobby right now?"
"Visiting Hank."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Robert..." Hank tried to smile at his friend. "What happened?" He was feeling better now that Jean had put him on antibiotics. Once he was back on his feet he had to run some tests on himself to find out what Sinister had done to him. But right now he focused on Bobby who looked worried and upset. "Did I really see Remy on Sinister's exam table?"
Bobby nodded once. Pain and anger were battling inside of him. "Yeah, Dark Beast got to Remy and I jumped after him. When I woke up I was in that cell with you and Remy... Remy made a deal with Sinister so the bastard would send us home."
"What kind of deal, Robert?" Hank didn't like the sound of this.
Bobby shrugged, unwilling to answer. "I don't know the details." He quickly changed their topic. "So what happened to you? I had no idea Dark Beast had taken your place. He acted like you. I never suspected a thing!"
"It happened about two months ago. I was working on my research when I was attacked from behind. A tesseract had opened and Dark Beast was all over me. A needle slipped beneath my skin and I became unconscious. I woke up on Sinister's exam table. He said that he didn't really need me as a lab rat, but now that I was here, he would run a test on me. He injected something, I don't know what it was, but I began to feel nauseous and I have been feverish ever since. Seeing you all of sudden shocked me."
"It was a trap, Hank. Sinister wanted Remy all along. That's probably why he had Dark Beast infiltrate the place." Bobby listlessly stared at his hands. "He's still at Sinister's lab, Hank. Remy's still there. I need to find him and bring him back."
Hank saw the pain in Bobby's eyes. "I take it something happened during my absence?"
"Turned out I also like men. I don't think I'm gay, Hank... Bi is more like it. Liking Remy in that way took me by surprise, but... the feelings are mutual." Bobby managed a weak smile.
Hank returned the smile. His big furry hand was a bit unsteady when he rested it on Bobby's shoulder. He squeezed gently. "I'm happy to hear that, Robert. Your happiness is very important to me."
Bobby actually blushed. "Hank, thanks..."
"So what's the plan?" Hank doubted he would be able to participate in the attack, but maybe he could help in other ways.
"So far the professor hasn't had any luck in locating Sinister..." Bobby's eyes grew dull. "And we can't do a thing until we find out his location. I hate waiting like this. Who knows what that bastard is doing to Remy." Suddenly he jumped to his feet and took up pacing. "Hank, I can't sit here like this! Remy doesn't stand a chance against Sinister!"
"The Cajun is stronger and smarter than we give him credit for." Logan unexpectedly entered the medlab. He had overheard part of their conversation. "Don't give up on LeBeau yet, Drake. The kid's tough." He also wanted some action, to get moving and get LeBeau back, but knew their hands were tied. "Hank, ain't there anything ya remember that can help?"
Hank shook his head. "No, I never left his laboratory. I was feverish most of the time. I'm sorry, Robert."
Bobby's shoulders slumped forward. "I can't lose him, not now when I just realized I love him."
Logan growled softly. "Don't give up yet, Drake." But except for providing moral support, there was little he could do.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
When Remy came to, he was back in the bed, wrapped up tightly in warm blankets. "Huh?" Feeling groggy, he tried to take in his surroundings. The last thing he remembered was using his charging power to blow himself. "Merde, why didn't it work?" His vision was a bit blurry, his hands and arms hurt and his heart sometimes missed a beat. He had certainly managed to hurt himself, but had failed to end his life.
"You need to stop doing this to yourself, Remy."
He sucked in his breath, hearing Sinister's voice. The scientist stood at the foot end, watching him.
"You would have died, had I not absorbed your energy." He didn't want Remy to know that he was still reeling from absorbing the charge.
Remy closed his eyes and turned his head away from Sinister. "Why didn't you just let me die?" He felt cheated, betrayed.
"I don't want you dead, LeBeau." Sinister forced himself to remain calm and to carry out his earlier decision. "I take it you really hate me?"
Remy's eyes locked with his and Sinister saw something else besides hate in them.
"I also pity you."
Remy's words made Sinister's head spin. "You pity me?"
But Remy remained quiet after that. He just wanted to close his eyes and forget about Sinister, about being his prisoner. He could only hope that Sinister kept his word and let Bobby live now that he had broken their deal by trying to kill himself.
Sinister considered everything he had heard. "You leave me no choice."
Remy shivered at hearing those words. What was Sinister going to do now? He kept his eyes tightly shut and tried to ignore the cold hands, pushing beneath his back and legs. Suddenly he was lifted. Sinister was carrying him, but where were they headed?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Remy had a hard time keeping his eyes open when Sinister carried him in to his lab. He cringed, feeling the cold exam table beneath his back. Staring blankly, he realized how futile resistance was. Trying to blow himself up had exhausted him and now Sinister reached for another syringe, doubtlessly filled with a strong sedative. He managed to keep his eyes open, dismissing the urge to close his eyes to banish out Sinister's image. He had to know what Sinister was up to.
"Please, don't..." Remy whispered the plea softly. "I won't run..." Like he could run in his current state! His body felt heavy and sluggish; his vision was blurry and his head hurt. "You don't have to do this..." He would behave, for now.
Sinister laughed softly. "I know you better than that, Remy." Melancholy stole in to his red eyes as he studied Remy LeBeau. He didn't like seeing the cold sweat, the shivers and unfocused expression in the alien orbs that equaled his. He laughed privately. The first thing he had done when he had met Remy was run a DNA test. The red on black eyes had resembled his own too much, but the DNA test had come back negative. Remy's DNA was completely different from his.
Remy released a soft yelp as the tip of the syringe slipped beneath his skin. Finally he closed his eyes, unable to look at Sinister any longer. Who knew what the scientist was up to this time?
A soft sigh echoed through the lab and Remy suddenly realized it was Sinister sighing, and not him. That sparkled his curiosity. Sinister had been acting odd since he had tried to blow himself up. Opening one eye took him several seconds, as the sedative was enfolding its effect. He felt warm and pleasantly tired, but he knew better than to relax.
Sinister monitored Remy closely, hoping the Cajun would finally let himself fall into relaxation, but no, Remy's body remained tense. The Cajun was even keeping an eye on him. Maybe he should double the dose and inject more of the sedative, but Remy's reaction to med and drugs was often unpredictable. "Sleep."
"Non, never... Don't... trust... you." It was getting harder to talk and something tugged at his consciousness, trying to cloak him in darkness, but he didn't give in. He had to remain awake! He couldn't fall asleep!
Sinister sighed again, finally admitting to himself that Remy would never trust him again. He'd had his chance in the past and had screwed up.
Remy's eyes widened, feeling Sinister lift him again. "Where...?" Where were they headed? Why sedate him first? Remy shivered as a tesseract formed in front of them. Was Sinister scared that the X-Men would come for him here? Mon Dieu, the X-Men didn't care! Not even Bobby cared about him now! Not after what he had let Sinister do to him! No one would come for him!
The lights darkened and swirls appeared around them, making his head spin. Remy yelped softly, instinctively holding on to Sinister. He didn't want to get lost between tesseracts. Surprised, he felt Sinister return the gently squeeze, holding on to him tighter. Remy hated himself for being this weak, this needy. If only Sinister hadn't given him that sedative!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Cyke, intruder alert!"
Scott immediately jumped to his feet, signaling Bobby and Warren to follow him. "Logan, where did the tesseract form this time?" Logan was on monitor duty and it had paid off already to keep scanning for tesseracts.
"Drake's room," came Logan's answer. "I'll join ya there."
"No, stay were you are. This might be a trap. Keep monitoring!" Scott didn't trust Sinister. He had learned the hard way that the scientist was always scheming. "Bobby, stay close, Warren, take to the air and distract Sinister."
"Great," muttered Warren, unfolding his wings. He didn't like flying inside the mansion, hating the small spaces that limited his movement.
"What is he doing here?" Bobby iced up, ready to take out Sinister for once and for all. "And damn it, I can't kill him before I have Remy back."
Scott shot Bobby a concerned glance. Had Bobby said that he wanted to kill Sinister? He didn't know Bobby like that. "Bobby, always remember that Remy needs you. Don't take chances. Make sure you stay safe." But as he looked at Bobby, he saw a grim determination in the transparent icy eyes that hadn't been there before.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Suddenly the world took on a familiar shape. Remy frowned; he knew the room he was in! It was Bobby's! Using his last bit of strength, he managed to lock eyes with Sinister. Had the mad man found another way to torment him? Was Sinister going after Bobby and had the scientist brought him to watch? Mon Dieu, he couldn't do this! The temptation to fade in to unconsciousness almost overwhelmed him, but he resisted. "Non... don't... not Bobby." The fear that Sinister was going after Bobby almost made him nauseous.
Sinister remained quiet and placed Remy on the bed. Seeing the naked Cajun shiver, he covered Remy with the comforter. Then he looked about, realizing that some of Remy's things had already found a way in here. "Do you have serious plans with Drake?"
Remy frowned. A part of his sedated brain had trouble interpreting the question. "I did, some days ago..." Sinister locked eyes with him and Remy quickly averted them.
"You did? You don't have them any longer?" When would Remy finally start to make sense?
Remy's eyes slipped shut, losing the battle against the sedative. "He... won't want me... after... after you..."
Sinister suddenly realized what Remy was trying to say. "If he really loves you, he'll stand by you."
Remy chuckled bitterly. "You... don't believe... that yourself."
Sinister wasn't sure what to do when Remy starting sobbing softly. Back when they had been lovers, he would have taken Remy in his arms to console him. But things were different now. The best thing he could do was leave. "I lost my wife because she couldn't forgive me. I won't lose you. I'll leave you be..."
Remy heard the words and wrestled to open his eyelids. "What?"
Sinister frowned. He had thought that Remy was unconscious. Those words hadn't been meant for the Cajun's ears. "Nothing." Stepping away from the bed he headed for the tesseract. It was over now.
The door exploded in to hundreds of tiny splinters, and Remy's eyes flashed open. Panicking, he tried to sit upright, but he could hardly move. Scott and Bobby ran inside, Warren followed them, air borne.
"Get Remy out of here," yelled Bobby. "And leave Sinister alone, the bastard's mine!" Completely iced up, Bobby considered his possibilities. There had to be a way to take out Sinister! He would start with freezing the bastard.
Scott took in the scene in front of him. Remy seemed confused, trying to move, but unable to pull it off. The Cajun's pupils were dilated. Sinister probably drugged him. He wanted to take care of Remy, but Bobby was taking on Sinister! What was Bobby thinking? "Bobby, get back here!" He could blast away at Sinister, make sure he left. It was an illusion to think that they could destroy Sinister.
"No, I want him dead!" Enraged, Bobby concentrated and directed his powers at Sinister, calling up a deadly cold.
Remy had a hard time believing Bobby's words, but touching Bobby's mind told him that the other man was sincere. Mon Dieu, he couldn't let Bobby commit murder! Bobby wasn't a killer and... For some elusive reason Sinister had brought him back to the mansion. "Bobby, non, don't..." Remy called upon his strength once more, knowing he would pay a high price for it later. He managed to raise an arm and placed it on Bobby's. The cold seeped in to his bones, making him shiver. "Don't kill... him."
Bobby's eyes grew big. "I can't believe you said that! Not after everything that bastard did to you!"
Seeing Remy and Bobby fight, Sinister quickly used his chance and stepped in to the tesseract. He had made the decision to return Remy to Bobby and now he had to stand by it, no matter how badly he wanted Remy. After looking at Remy's shocked face one last time, he closed the tesseract, leaving Westchester behind him.
Warren, who had watched closely, wondered about the interaction between Remy and Bobby. Bobby had told him Remy and he had become friends, but there was a strange edge to their conversation. What was he missing?
"Why did you stop me?" Bobby stared wild eyed at Remy. Anger still controlled him and steered his irrational actions. "I want him to pay for hurting you! Why did you want him to get away?"
"Bobby, cher..." Adrenaline pumped through his system, fighting the sedative. "I still love you, cher, but I don't want you to... commit murder..." Remy's eyes closed, his heart beat like mad in his chest and he began to cave in under the pressure. "Sorry..."
Bobby, still in the clutches of a red daze of intense anger, marched out of the room. Scott realized he needed to take control now. "Warren, take Remy to the Medlab and make sure Jean checks on him. I'm going after Mister Stubborn." Scott didn't waste any time and quickly followed his team-mate. "Bobby, what the hell are you doing?"
Bobby slid out of the house, needing space. He ignored Scott, who followed him. Unexpectedly, Scott's optic blast shattered his ice slide. "Fuck, Slim! What are you trying to pull? Leave me the hell alone!"
Scott hurried toward him and gritted his teeth as he grabbed Bobby. "Listen up, Robert. Remy just got back from God knows what an ordeal and you're throwing a tantrum? Grow up! You're not a kid any longer. Right now, Remy's hurting and he needs you!"
"Then why didn't he let me kill Sinister? The bastard deserved it!" Bobby was starting to calm down and the ice faded as he changed back to his normal appearance. "You saw it too, he didn't want me to kill Sinister!"
Scott hated playing the devil's advocate, or Sinister's, in this case. "Sinister returned Remy to us. Maybe we need to find out why and then your question gets answered at the same time?"
Bobby shivered, not due to the cold, which was his friend, but because he had stormed out of the room without making sure Remy was fine. He had just left his lover there... with Warren. "Oh shit, what did I do?" He needed to apologize to Remy, take care of the Cajun and make sure Warren wasn't making things worse!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Remy's eyes were closed and Warren privately debated his next step. Scott had told him to take the Cajun to the Medlab and Remy looked out of it, which meant carrying him. He wasn't looking forward to this one.
His eyes scanned Bobby's room, finding two toothbrushes, two pair of slippers, some of Remy's books; it was obvious the Cajun had moved in and Bobby had let him. Why? Mystified, he headed for the bed. "Gambit? Can you hear me? I'm not carrying you to the Medlab, get your act together."
Warren's unfriendly voice penetrated the deep recesses of Remy's mind and he struggled to open his eyes. Why couldn't they just leave him alone until the sedative had worn off? And why did it have to be Warren? Why hadn't Scott stayed instead of the winged man? "Can... walk..." But he doubted he could even move his little finger.
Warren waited for Remy to get to his feet, but nothing happened. "Come on, I don't have all day!" He took a step away from the Cajun and tapped his foot. It was then when he noticed the mark which the syringe had left. Had Sinister injected something into the Cajun's neck? Curious, he bent forward and studied the little wound. Damn, why aren't you wearing any clothes? The Cajun was naked beneath the comforter!
Seeing Remy's tiny, sluggish movements, he opted for action. It was obvious that the Cajun was in no state to walk on his own. "Guess I'll be carrying you after all."
"Non! Can...walk!" He didn't want to put himself in such a vulnerable position. He didn't trust Warren to take him to the Medlab safely and he didn't need more injuries due to a premeditated fall. In the end, he somehow managed to elbow himself in a sitting position, but his legs refused to co-operate. "Just... leave me here..." Once the sedative had worn off he would make his way back to his own room. Bobby didn't want him here no more.
But Warren shook his head. "Sinister sedated you, didn't he?" He caught Remy's weak nod. "That settles it then. I might not be fond of you, thief, but I'll carry out Slim's orders..." Slowly, giving Remy time to adjust to the movement, he lifted the Cajun and started for the door. Remy's head lolled against his chest and the Cajun's hands opened and closed spasmodically. Are you fighting me? You don't stand a chance in this state. It crossed his mind that he could just dump the Cajun somewhere, but no, he was loyal to the team.
He stepped into the elevator and pressed the button that would take him to the Medlab. Frowning, he stared at the Cajun. Had Gambit lost weight? The last time that he had slammed in to him during a training session Remy had seemed more solid.
"Bob...by... I'm sorry, cher... Sor...ry..."
Warren raised an eyebrow. There was that word again; cher. Why would Remy call Bobby that? Don't tell me they're dating, just don't. He had always suspected that Bobby seldom got lucky with the girls because his real preference was men, but he also knew that Bobby was in complete and utter denial. Had that changed during the last few days?
Well, that Gambit was bi was something that didn't surprise him. The Cajun lusted after everything on two legs, but Bobby? Why would Bobby fall for that?
Remy stirred and started to slip from his grip. It would have been easy to let the Cajun slip further and let him hit the floor hard, but he couldn't do that to a team-mate. "Damn it, stupid conscience!" He tightened his hold and Remy's head now rested against his shoulder. The Cajun looked oddly vulnerable while asleep in his arms. The elevator doors opened and Warren marched in to the Medlab.
"Warren, over here, please."
Warren smiled, pleasantly surprised. "Hank! I knew you'd be up and about in no time!" It felt good, seeing that his friend was getting better.
Jean also joined them and Hank immediately ran a scan on Remy.
"Thank you for bringing him in," said Jean, studying Warren closely. "I wasn't so sure you'd do it, considering how you feel about Remy."
Warren shrugged once. "He's part of the team."
Jean appreciated his loyalty; maybe a working relationship could be established between Remy and Warren.
"Oh my..." Hank cleared his throat. "Remy's completely unconscious now. I do not know what Sinister used to sedate him, but it knocked him out."
"How about his overall condition?" Jean joined Hank at the monitor.
"He seems to be in surprisingly good shape. The only thing I could find wrong with him is a burn on his thigh."
Warren looked away, embarrassed when Hank pulled away the comforter to show Jean the burn. Too much information!
"Bobby will be so relieved," muttered Hank while tending to the burn.
Warren heard the comment. "Why's that?"
Jean licked her lips, realizing how delicate the situation was. "Bobby and Remy are... dating." Hank had told her what he had learned from Bobby during these last few days.
"Dating? Dating!" Warren's face contorted. "I can understand Bobby likes guys, hey, I don't care about that, but why Gambit?"
"Love's blind," quipped Jean. "I think they're good for each other and you're not meddling, Warren."
Warren knew that tone; Jean meant business. He had to tell Betsy about Bobby and Remy and excused himself. When he approached the door, Bobby hurried toward him. Suddenly Bobby grabbed his sweater and pushed him against the wall. "Hey, Bobby, calm down!"
"Yes, Bobby, calm down." Scott rested a hand on Bobby's shoulder. "Look, Remy's here and they're taking care of him." He pointed at the sleeping Cajun.
Seeing Remy peacefully asleep calmed Bobby down. He looked at Warren, trying to figure out what was going on. "You took him to the Medlab?"
"Yeah, why not? Bobby, I don't like Gambit, but that doesn't mean I enjoy seeing him suffer." Strange, that was true. He hadn't realized that until now. "Why didn't you tell me you're interested in him?" Oops, where had that question come from? It was the last thing he wanted to address.
Bobby blushed. "It only happened a few days ago and then Sinister kidnapped him. I would have told you... eventually."
"Eventually?" echoed Warren.
"I know you don't like him, so I wasn't sure how you'd react." Bobby's eyes sought out Remy's form. "Can we talk about this later?"
"Sure." Warren exchanged a look with Scott, who looked tired and worried. "Anything else you want me to do, Slim?"
"Relief Logan from monitor duty..." Scott was relieved that Warren had kept his cool.
"I'm on it." Warren slowly left the Medlab and he looked over his shoulder when Bobby whispered Remy's name. Standing in the doorway he continued to look as Bobby claimed Remy's hand with a deep sigh.
"Remy, I've got you back. I'm sorry that I threw a tantrum... I was so mad at Sinister..."
"Robert, Remy can't hear you. He's unconsciousness." Hank reassuringly patted his friend's back. "It will be several hours before Remy wakes up again."
"Hank, can I sit with him? I feel like shit for screaming at him..."
"I don't know what you're referring to, Robert, but yes, you can stay. Just keep it quiet. Remy needs to sleep." Hank smiled and joined Scott to update his friend.
Warren averted his eyes when Bobby leaned in and gently kissed Remy's lips. Too much information.