Part 7

	The scent… =that= particular scent… Logan quickly got his 
feet on the floor   and took in another sniff of air. He briefly 
questioned his sanity, but then   realized the scent was real 
and it had only appeared minutes ago. 
	After slipping in to his clothes Logan thoughtfully marched 
in to the   corridor, trying to dissect the scent that was 
drawing him closer to one   particular room at the end of the 
corridor. A room that should be empty, yet   his smell told him 
differently. Ghosts didn’t possess a personal scent, did   they? 
	Logan pushed the door ajar. A faint ray of sunlight 
illuminated the room,   and offered him enough light to identify 
the person lying in the bed.   Prowling closer he studied the 
face, pale and drained and shook his head in   disbelief. Gambit 
had died in Antarctica, at least that was what Rogue had   told 
them. 
	Then, what was the kid doing alive and curled up in a fetal 
position in his   bed? “She lied,” he whispered privately, and 
wasn’t sure how to feel about   this unexpected revelation. 
	Logan kept his distance; not wanting to wake Gambit. Dark 
circles underneath   his eyes told him that the kid had missed 
out on a lot of sleep. 
	“I’m glad ya made it back alive,” he whispered and nodded 
his head. Although   Sinister had greatly manipulated the kid, 
Logan knew Remy hadn’t been a   willing participant. During the 
time in which Gambit had stayed here Logan   had gotten to know 
him a little. 
	But then again, the kid was hiding too many secrets. Those 
secrets would one   day get him killed. 
	Logan had smelled the brief moments of fear on the Cajun 
when he had gotten   too close, too personal. Remy had told him 
about his life in New Orleans as   a thief, but had completely 
avoided talking about anything prior to that. 
	Softly Logan closed the door behind him, listening to the 
Cajun’s easy   breathing. Hell would break loose the moment 
Warren discovered Gambit was   still alive. Chuckling a little 
Logan hoped Gambit would peg the playboy   down to size. He was 
well aware of the fact that Warren disliked him as   well, but 
he had decided long ago that the winged man’s opinions didn’t   
matter much to him. 
	As he returned to his room Logan wondered how Ororo would 
react to Remy’s   return. They had been close friends before 
Remy’s secret had started to   shatter that trust. “We’ve all 
been tricked and messed with,” he muttered   softly. As far as 
he was concerned, Remy had to earn that second chance but   he 
was willing to give the Cajun that chance. 
	  “Ororo?” Jean called out softly as she climbed the stairs 
to Storm’s room.   After taking a refreshing hot shower she had 
dressed and decided to seek out   her friend. Scott had grumbled 
that he needed coffee first and thus they had   gone separate 
ways. Breakfast would be ready in a few minutes and Storm   
would probably be up and watering her plants. 
	“Yes?” Storm replied and smiled as Jean stepped inside. 
Loving fingers   trailed the sinews of a leaf and she looked up, 
wondering why Jean had come   here this early. 
	“Something happened last night,” Jean said, not wasting any 
time. After she   had mentally checked on Remy, who was still 
asleep, she had decided Storm   should be told first. Warren 
wasn’t staying at the mansion at the moment and   she would tell 
him upon his return. 
	Storm got to her feet and a sudden alert expression colored 
her eyes. “Tell   me.” 
	Jean walked over to the plants and watched a drop of water 
slide down the   green. “Remy is still alive,” she said, 
stressing every word. 
	“What?” Baffled, Storm walked up to Jean. “In the name of 
the Goddess, are   you serious?” 
	“He showed up yesterday, cold and worn down. He didn’t die 
in Antarctica.” 
	“But Rogue told us…” Storm stopped as she forced herself to 
reach inward and   evaluate her feelings. There was joy at 
hearing that her friend was still   alive, yet she also felt the 
pain his betrayal had put her through. 
	The Morlocks had trusted her. They had been her 
responsibility and then she’   d discovered Gambit had helped 
the Marauders slaughter them. It had been a   shock to her. Her 
dear friend… capable of such betrayal. 
	No, she reminded herself. Remy hadn’t known about 
Sinister’s plans. Did that   knowledge change anything? She 
wasn’t sure. 
	“Ororo?” Jean said softly and placed her hand on her 
friend’s arm. 
	“I’m fine,” Storm replied and composed herself. “Please 
excuse me for   breakfast. I’m not hungry this morning.” 
	Saddened, Jean watched Storm open the doors to her balcony 
and then call on   the winds to carry her away from the house. 
Give her some time, Jean   reminded herself. She felt confident 
that Storm would talk to Remy the   moment she was ready to face 
him. 
	  “Hank? I need you in the medlab today, hope you didn’t 
make any plans.”   Scott gulped down the coffee and devoured the 
bacon and eggs, which Jubilee   had prepared. 
	Hank looked up questioningly. “And what did you have in 
mind?” 
	“Gambit’s back and needs…” Scott never managed to end that 
sentence as McCoy   almost hit the ceiling hearing that comment. 
	“What did you say?” 
	“Gambit’s back and…” 
	“I thought I had misunderstood,” Hank whispered and calmed 
down. Trust Scott   to throw this bit of information so casually 
at him! 
	“No, you didn’t. I couldn’t believe it at first too, but 
he’s asleep in his   room right now.” 
	Hank pushed the chair away from the table as he’d finished 
his breakfast,   still trying to accept this revelation. “He 
should be in the medlab. I need   to examine him.” 
	“Gambit convinced Jean that it could wait until morning. 
Are you going to   get him now or …?” Scott asked, a bit amused 
to see the broad grin on McCoy’   s face. He understood that 
reaction, as he had felt equally relieved to find   out that 
Gambit was still alive. After all, Remy was an X-Men and they 
would   deal with Gambit’s past when the time was right. 
	“I will take care of him and this time I will make him 
submit to every test   I want to run on him,” Hank muttered, 
knowing only too well about Gambit’s   dislike of the medlab. 
Once again, he wondered what caused the man’s unease. 
	“Kid’s still asleep,” Logan stated as he strolled inside. 
“Let him sleep,   looks kinda drained.” 
	Scott raised an eyebrow. “So, how did you find out?” 
	Logan tapped his nose. 
	“Of course,” Scott whispered and looked about. Who didn’t 
know yet? 
	Jubilee walked inside, carrying more toast and cursing the 
fact that it was   her turn this week to prepare meals. It meant 
getting up early and doing a   lot of dirty dishes. But as she 
noticed the odd feeling in the room she   said, “What?” 
	“Our fearless leader,” Hank started with a smug smile on 
his face, “Just had   the courtesy to inform us that Gambit has 
returned to the mansion.” 
	“Remy’s alive?” Jubilee said and grinned. 
	Logan snorted as he grabbed his plate. “Back off and give 
the kid some   breathing space.” 
	“Oh,” Jubilee moaned, “does Storm know?” 
	“I told her,” Jean replied as she entered the room and took 
in their   expressions. Good, she sensed their relief and as far 
as she could tell, no   one planned on giving Remy the fifth 
degree. She wasn’t sure he could cope   with that now. 
	“Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got a patient to look 
after,” Hank said and   quickly left. 
	Scott looked thoughtfully at his wife. “How did Ororo 
react?” 
	“She needs time to get to terms with this development,” 
Jean stated and   sipped her tea. “But she loves Remy. In the 
end she’ll talk to him and   forgive him.” 
	“Sentimental crap,” Logan grunted and decided to eat 
breakfast on his own.   “Kid made a mistake in trusting 
Sinister.” Then he shot Scott a burning   glance. “We’ve all 
been there, made those mistakes, even Warren.” After   having 
said that he turned and was about to walk in to the garden when 
he   suddenly halted. “Well, I’ll be damned.” 
	“What?” Jubilee asked and ran after him. Growing quiet she 
followed his   stare. “It’s snowing!” she exclaimed happily and 
opened the door to inhale   the scent of ice. “Build me a snow 
man!” she commanded and gave Logan her   most adoring smile.” 
Please?” 
	Logan mumbled something barely audible and slammed the door 
shut. Jubilee   followed him, as he searched the house for a 
quiet place to eat his   breakfast. 
	Eventually he gave in, snarling that she could have her 
snowball fight and   told her to put on warmer clothes. Jubilee 
nodded her head, kissed the   grumpy man on a cheek and ran to 
her room. 
	“Kid’s trouble as well,” Logan mumbled as he noticed Jean’s 
sparkling smile   and he realized how he had missed seeing that 
smile during the last days.   Slowly he admitted to himself that 
it had been Gambit’s supposed death that   had depressed her and 
now that the Cajun was back, that smile was back as   well. 
Angry with himself, he also realized he felt envious of Gambit 
who had   put that smile back on her face, and he wished he had 
been the reason for   its return. 
	  Hank stared at the sleeping form for long moments and 
didn’t like what he   saw. Gambit looked exhausted and there was 
something unsettling about that   face he couldn’t label. Remy 
should be in the medlab as he didn’t know what   the exposure to 
the cold had done to the Cajun. 
	Gently, he placed a hand on Remy’s brow, wondering why they 
hadn’t turned   the Blackbird around to search for their 
teammate, but then again, Rogue had   been so convincing! Maybe 
they had chosen the easy way out, choosing not to   deal with 
the troubled young man. But now Remy had returned and it was his   
task to make sure his health wouldn’t suffer from his stay in 
Antarctica.   “Remy?” he said softly and cocked his head as the 
young man moaned softly. 
	“Cold… so cold…” 
	Hank nodded his head at those words. It wasn’t surprising 
that Remy was   having nightmares about the cold. “Remy? Wake 
up.” 
	Remy didn’t want to wake up, didn’t want to open his eyes. 
All he wanted was   to lie here and breathe in warm air, feeling 
the warmth cradle him. 
	“Remy?” This time he spoke louder and noted the effect it 
had on the young   man. One eye opened slowly, reluctantly. 
	“Henri?” Remy moaned sleepily. He’d hoped Jean would keep 
his return quiet,   but he should have known she’d ask McCoy to 
check on him. 
	“You will come down to the medlab with me,” Hank stated in 
an authoritative   tone. He wouldn’t allow Remy to talk himself 
out of this one. “Do you   require help in getting to your 
feet?” 
	“Non,” Remy replied resigned. He’d heard Hank use that tone 
before and   considering the fact that Jean had probably asked 
McCoy to check on him, he   would find the two of them double 
teaming him. 
	After struggling with the blankets he allowed Hank to 
disentangle them from   his body and gingerly got to his feet. 
His eyes threatened to close again   and goose flesh appeared 
all over his body, feeling how cold the room had   gotten during 
the night. 
	“You must tell me how you survived,” Hank started and then 
realized Remy was   about to stumble over his own feet. 
Resolutely, he wrapped a long arm around   Gambit’s waist and 
smothered every protest with a glare. 
	Remy leaned heavily on McCoy and concentrated on making his 
way to the   medlab. He couldn’t help but wonder how Hank felt 
about his return. The man   hadn’t made any remarks about his 
part in the massacre yet, but Remy knew it   was only a matter 
of time before Hank would address the matter. 
	Gathering his mental senses he tried hard not to reach out 
to McCoy in   whatever way possible. As long as he didn’t 
understand this… empathy, as   Magneto had called it, he should 
remain careful. 
	“You will remain in the medlab as long as I deem it 
necessary,” Hank pointed   out to him. 
	“Oui,” Remy whispered, too tired to argue. Why were they 
taking care of him?   Why had Jean pulled him inside? It would 
have been so much easier if they   had turned him away! 
	Hank had a fairly good idea what Remy was thinking and 
swallowed hard. This   was such a mess! He wished Remy had 
confided in them, had told them about   Sinister, but apparently 
Gambit had decided against that. In a way, the   X-Men had 
failed him and Hank shook his head, realizing Remy hadn’t felt   
safe with them, not safe enough to =trust= them. That would have 
to change. 
	After what seemed like hours they finally arrived at the 
medlab and Hank   eased Remy down on an exam table, distinctly 
noticing the shivers that   racked the body. Was it because of 
the cold or… something else? Why did   Gambit hate the medlab? 
	“I’m going to run several tests on you,” he explained as he 
attached   electrodes to Remy’s skin. “I’ll also need a blood 
sample.” Remy didn’t   object and surprised Hank observed those 
red eyes. “You can sleep through   the tests,” he offered. 
	Remy nodded his head once and then closed his eyes. The 
medlab was cold, so   awfully cold and it reminded him of 
another place. A place he didn’t want to   remember, as he 
didn’t want to smell that sterile scent, the stench of blood   
as the man had… Stop! Remy shivered, determined not to descend 
in to the   depths of his memories. This time it was different 
and he could trust Hank… 
	Surprise made way for concern at hearing Remy’s strangled 
sobs and again   Hank wished he knew what Remy was trying to 
deal with. Every time Gambit had   been here there had been a 
distant expression in his eyes. Seemingly asleep,   Remy drew in 
deep breaths and Hank felt his patient’s pulse slow down. 
	  Adjusting the microscope he hummed softly. So far 
everything had checked out   just fine and it appeared that Remy 
was only exhausted. Hank was rubbing his   eyes, as unexpectedly 
someone called out his name. 
	“Hank! You’ve got to see this! Do you know it’s snowing?” 
	“Bobby?” Hank looked up from his work and stared at Bobby 
whose smile seemed   to warm the entire room. “I did not know 
you’d returned,” he said and   quickly glanced at Gambit who 
stirred in his sleep. 
	“I came back last night. Rogue wanted to be alone and 
Warren didn’t answer   my calls, so I figured I better keep you 
company!” Bobby halted in his   tracks, seeing the displeased 
expression in his friend’s eyes. What was he   missing here? 
	“Wanna throw some snowballs? Jubilee got Logan to build her 
a snowman and…”   he grew quiet as he followed Hank’s eyes. His 
friend wasn’t alone down here.   “Who’s your patient?” he asked, 
trying to remember if someone had been   missing earlier. 
	Softly walking over to the bed, as not to disturb the 
person inside it, he   inclined his head. Auburn hair… a man? 
“Gambit?” he stuttered surprised and   looked to McCoy for 
confirmation. “But she said he was dead!” 
	“Apparently she… made a mistake,” Hank said, repeating 
Remy’s words. The two   men stared at each other, unspoken 
questions in the air. 
	Bobby licked his lips to ask why Rogue would lie to them, 
as Remy’s eyes   opened. 
	Unexpectedly, Bobby found himself staring right back in to 
those red orbs.   

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