Disclaimer: Oh you guys! It's finally here, this is it. The last chapter. There were days where I didn't think we'd make it to this point but we managed to. After posting the last chapter I immediately began working on this because A.) we all needed some happy after that, and B.) I really wanted to post it by this deadline because well... it's my Birthday! :D So finishing this chapter up was like a present to myself. But you know what would really be an awesome b-day gift? If you guys told me what you think in some more awesome reviews! Ha, kidding, but no seriously thank you to all that have read and enjoyed this story, especially those who reviewed, faved, or followed it. Without you guys I wouldn't have had the motivation to keep going. So you are all officially awesome! How about that? Okay, I don't own the following: the X-Men, The Wedding Date, or Michael Buble or his songs... but you know it is my birthday... hey Marvel, can we make with some magic here or what?

... Yeah, I thought so. But anywho, keep your eyes out for special guests guys. You'll see. ;)

Oh, and Blue? This is it. It's the most spectacular thing I could think of to give you. So guys, this chapter's dedicated to BlueFoxtrot A Samba.

I have to reach out to my friends here because in all honesty, my story is my baby and if that's the case Indigo-Night-Whisp's crew is like the doting aunts and uncle, GreenEyed Alice is the best friend I call in the middle of the night when my kid won't stop crying, and Blue is the godmother who loads my kid up with sugar and caffeine before passing him back on to me. -_- But thanks to all of you!

It was months later. But it still felt like a lifetime since Kitty's wedding. The whole ceremony felt like she was balanced on eggshells, only steps away from careening over the edge. She had smiled on like a painted porcelain doll, the flocks of doting in-laws streaming past her eyes, the slightly concerned glances from both Logan and Ororo, and even the few attempted conversations Bobby tried to initiate flowing into the background dimly. It was like all the color had just flowed out, leaving the mass of the ceremony and reception in faded dull tones. She didn't break down once, or at least not until the very end.

The moment Kitty tossed the blood-red bouquet of roses the mass of girls that had surrounded her (but staying awkwardly distanced from her gloved arms) had started jumping up and down, screaming in their glee trying to snatch at the hallowed prize. It was all silenced when the descending flowers had flowed gracefully into her practically waiting arms. It was the first color that had seemed to register in Rogue's mind for the first time in twenty-four hours.

She stared, her lips already trembling slightly as one hand delicately fingered a bright red petal, but her eyes went on unseeing, past the roses in her arms.

All she saw were a pair of bright flashing rubies incased in ebony as dark as midnight.

And that's when her emotional dam finally snapped, in front of all those people standing there, some awkwardly wondering at why the maid of honor was having such a breakdown. But frankly, Rogue didn't give a damn. The absurdity of it all finally crashed down, wave upon wave of emotional conflict of the past two days climaxing in that one moment.

She had caught the bouquet. The untouchable, lonely woman who had paid for a charade to make people think that being untouchable didn't mean she wasn't happy. She caught the bouquet of the woman who had betrayed her friendship, who had slept repeatedly with the man she had thought she was in love with. She was the woman, who hours ago, let the man she was really, undeniably, undoubtedly in love with walk out the doors and back into the waiting arms of another woman.

And now, she was the one next in line to be married. The irony hit her like a brick wall as hysterics finally managed to chink out against the deceptive façade she had been living in all day. One airy laugh left her trembling lips before more tumbled after, finally escalating until she realized the tears were running down her face, and sobs had replaced the heaving in her chest. She had worn gloves that day with her dress, signifying that she wasn't even going to try to reach out against her mutation today. She wanted that familiar guard, the dividing line between her and everyone. But the simple fact was that she was tired of getting hurt. Tired of people getting close just to move away again. Tired of living a lie with painted on smile. Tired of the fighting.

She was just tired.

It all seemed to wash over at once as she brought the bouquet to her face, ignoring the scratches that the thorns were causing. She was numb to it. She felt like she'd never feel again. At first people were hesitant to approach her, but finally the scant few that had been put off by her obvious barrier, those glistening white gloves, pushed the anxiety aside and Jubilee was wrapping her arms around her, Wanda was patting her gently on the back as Ororo tried to push the white stripes away from her face. Finally Logan breezed by all of them, enveloping her where Jubilee had been before and finally pulling her out of the curious gawkers as she let herself collapse into his arms. After all this time alone, finally she had people reaching out to her without fear. But it felt like such a bittersweet reward.

After that Pete and Kitty had postponed leaving for their honeymoon immediately, attempting to console her in her room. Rogue turned the younger woman away with tears sparkling in her once trust-worthy blue eyes, turning against any attempts at apology with a scathing reply. Finally even Bobby approached her door, but he too left against the impenetrable wall of silence that she held up anywhere near his presence. In the end she stayed at Xavier's quite a few days past her intended visit, but fervently refused all offers to stay. It was unbearable being around the places that had so much bad associated with it, whether from her initial stay or this last one. So finally, bidding farewells and reassuring lies that she'd stay in touch, she went back to New Orleans. His city.

She secluded herself far better than she realized she could. At first there had been an outpour of messages from the mansion that she simply ignored, whether they be concerned calls from Wanda or Jubilee or the threats from Logan if she didn't call back. Finally she figured that Ororo had them convinced that she just needed more time and the calling stopped. She was very dimly aware of this.

Her life consisted of very few things. She went to work, she went to the store, she went home. She would insist to herself that she didn't entertain fantasies of going to the bar where she'd met Emil. She didn't imagine the wisp of trench coat fluttering out of the corner of her vision. She didn't see the announcement of the upcoming nuptials in the newspaper. On some level she might have acknowledged this as pathetic, but on the surface she was stone. And so the days of her life faded listlessly one after other. She wore her concealing clothing again. She avoided people again. She let her life move on again.

It was a night just like the one before it, just like any other since her arrival back in La Ville when the pounding on her door interrupted her nightly casing of the news. She hadn't been really paying attention, what was new about it? But she did heave a sigh as she broke out of her interrupted cycle, the baggy robe swaying on her shoulders as she finally got up to answer the resumed hammering on her door.

Surprise… surprise wasn't even close to the emotion she felt making her eyes widen as she stared at the masculine, disheveled figure leaning heavily in her doorway. Her mind couldn't wrap around the image standing before her, her mouth agape as her eyes roved over his figure, trying to associate this impossible, incredible dream with the dismal reality her past few months had been. She felt the tears press desperately close to the surface as he caught her eyes with his own crimson heated gaze, still standing there slumped in the door frame, panting heavily, like he had just run a marathon. Which would have been rather odd since he was wearing a tux…

With realization choking the words trying to make their way out of her throat, she felt a new wave of tears threaten to take her. Especially when he finally spoke, the word sounding strained and dripping of the same emotion running through her.

"Rogue."

Never had she heard her name spoken like that before, and she felt herself quickly falling over the edge as she struggled to reply.

"Remy, why-?"

He interrupted swiftly, shaking his head with his gaze still locked with hers.

"I couldn't."

That did it for her. She lost complete control as tears ran through her frame, her body breaking down as he lunged for her, his arms instantly wrapping around her as his lips sought hers. She clung to him as she rushed to meet his, desperately pulling him closer. If there was a need for air she wasn't aware of it. Later she wouldn't be able to say how her door had managed to get closed, or how both her worn out bathrobe and his tux jacket had ended up on the floor.

The next thing she was aware of was being on the couch, desperately clutching him to her as she was reminded of that day in the library so many months before. They never paused, their hands hungrily traveling as if to make up for the absence of the past few months. She closed her eyes in pure euphoria at the brush of his hands down her bare arms. She had gone for so long without contact, but this was what she had really craved.

They finally began pulling away from each other, their fevered kisses turning longer and more languid before they pulled their lips apart. Briefly he rested his forehead against her own, and she closed her eyes, basking in the heat of his breath against her face as she finally became aware of their surroundings. She raised up only a little bit from her position of lying on the couch, allowing his arms to slip tighter back around her as she wrapped her arms around his torso resting on top of her.

She ran a few of her fingers through his hair as he laid his head over her chest, and she knew he could hear the frantically beating pace of her heart that was rushing through her own ears. She struggled desperately for words as she tried to regulate her breathing. And even though she couldn't feel happier in this moment, she felt the traitorous nagging of doubts tug at the corner of her mind.

"Remy, you can't."

He raised his head back up, his expression worried yet thoughtful as he searched her eyes that were quickly refilling with new tears.

"You can't just walk away. We barely even know each other-"

"Oh Rogue," he sighed wistfully as he rose up to silence her protests with his lips again tenderly, drawing them away only to kiss the two wet trails lining her cheeks. "Don't y' see? I love you. I need you." He put emphasis on the final phrase as once again he pressed his lips to her, reaching up one hand to caress the back of her head and pull her closer.

When he gently broke away, Rogue's eyes fluttered open in a contented haze, her reply ready on her lips, "Remy, I love you to-"

BEEEEEEP BEEEEP. BEEEEEP. BEEEP.

Rogue's eyes flew open as her heart jumped practically out of her chest, her breathing completely irregular and heaving as all her senses were thrown into high alert. One of her arms pinioned wildly next to her until finally her hand found its target, slamming down hard on the alarm clock. She took a few deep, mind-cleansing breaths with her eyes closed, before pulling up, realizing that she had been lying asleep on her stomach, clutching a pillow to her while she slept.

Finally becoming aware of her surroundings, she rose up, her eyes initially searching for any sign of the Cajun from her dreams before realization dawned on her.

It wasn't months after Kitty's wedding. It was the day of.

She was still at Xavier's. She was still the maid of honor.

But most importantly, Remy still wasn't here with her.

She closed her eyes and ran a hand down her face until she realized her fingers ran across something damp. Retracing the wetness lining her eyes, she realized she had been crying in her sleep. It wasn't really surprising with the events of her dreams, but realizing that it wasn't reality was incredible. It had felt so real.

She spent her early preparations walking about the room in a haze as she tried to realign her thoughts of reality and the bittersweet vision of her subconscious. She really didn't know how to see the two together, but it felt like a very foreboding presence was lurking in her mind. Was this what she was destined for, or was it the path she was choosing?

The real question was, what did she intend to do about it?

Saturday, Day Six: The Wedding

The ride to the beauty shop where all the girls were getting their hair and make-up done was rather subdued as a distinct line seemed to be drawn around Rogue, Jubilee and Wanda, leaving Kitty obviously out of the loop as the girls did all they could to ignore the bride. An oblivious Tabitha and Ororo tried to keep the conversation light and friendly, which was a stretch for Tabby, but it did nothing to alleviate the static tension in the air that hung around the goup. Rogue sat in the back of the SUV with Jubilee on one side and Rahne on the other. The little girl even seemed to pick up on Rogue's mood, or maybe someone had forewarned her, because she didn't say a word about Remy's whereabouts. Instead the little girl sleepily leaned against Rogue as Rogue had one arm wrapped around her shoulders. The little co-flower girl didn't seem all that excited to be getting ready for the wedding at seven in the morning with the main event a little more than five hours away.

They finally reached the city, the ride dragging on in Rogue's mind, where they set up shop at one of the finer boutiques at the suggestion from one of Ororo's friends, the place already booked out in advance. There they ran into a few other members of Piotr's family, including the other flower girl, Piotr's adorable little sister Illyana who Rahne quickly recruited as entertainment before their turns in the swirling chairs.

Rogue ended up sitting beside Ororo who watched her expression for a while as the beauticians went to work, sweeping up locks of hair and curling others. Ororo remained quiet for quite some time but finally Rogue noticed that as time went on she seemed more and more concerned, her brow furrowing even as Rogue's remained an impassive shell.

"I'm fine." Ororo paused for a moment still, studying her eyes as she said with her ever wise voice, "I don't believe you."

That was the moment that the woman helping Ororo quickly finished off her styling job, taking only a minute to encloud Ororo's hair with a cloud of hairspray before she pulled away to let Ororo see herself in the mirror. But the white haired woman continued to ignore her own reflection as she stood, removing the throw that was covering her from the shoulders down until she took a spot standing adjacent to the woman curling Rogue's hair, waiting at her shoulder with an expectant look on her face. Rogue continued to remain insistent though finally biting out sarcastically, "Nothing a bottle of Jack and a straight razor won't fix."

She even lifted her chin a little as if to examine her appearance better and the non-existent five o'clock shadow with a little smirk that all too quickly dropped from her features. Ororo shot her a rueful smile as she walked around her position, turning her back on the vanity with all the hair supplies for an army so that she could look at her better with a raised brow and a little humor dancing in her own eyes, "Did you absorb Logan?"

Rogue's facade cracked a bit there, and she shot the weather witch a small, genuine grin before she moved her eyes distractedly elsewhere, until Ororo began to speak again, "You know, I'm really proud of you."

Rogue shot her a startled look and Ororo pressed on, gently gripping Rogue's shoulder through the material, "It doesn't feel like so long ago that I was a runaway trying to make it on my own too. But Rogue, you've come so far. I know that moving away was hard and I know getting control on your own was worse, and I just wanted to let you know, that I think it's really amazing. Not many people would have the strength you do, Marie. I'm very proud of the woman you've become."

Rogue felt the emotionless wall she had prepared for the day shudder under the compassion in Ororo's voice, and she gave her an edge of a full smile as she battered against the tears trying to escape her eyes. "Thanks 'Ro." The words sounded slightly choked, but Ororo nodded as she skittered out of the way of a busy attendant. She smiled back at Rogue once more before she crossed over to the still awaiting girls and Rogue turned back to her own reflection, eyeing it a bit. She still could see some puffiness and black rings around her eyes from her rough night and her eyes seemed a little duller. But thinking on Ororo's words brought up the memory of Remy stealing her straightener and make-up, and she wondered what they saw when they looked at her.

The sound of laughter caught her attention and she looked in the reflection beyond her shoulder catching the two little girls fully entertained. Illyana had picked up one of the magazines displaying a carefully crafted up-do that she had lifted up and was modeling against her own locks as Rahne stared at her with mock consideration before she waved the brush in her hand decisively, her other hand placed sassilly on her hip as she emulated one of the oblivious hair dressers down the way. Rahne then proceeded to comment on Illyana's choice, throwing in a lot of extra drawn out 'Dawlings' into her analysis until she had both girls giggling again.

Rogue felt her own amusement grow a bit at this, the familiar affection playing close in chest as she watched her favorite little charge from the mansion thoroughly relaxed and happy at the moment. Her focus was redirected when her beautician finished with her with a little swirl, letting Rogue get the first good look of her appearance in the mirror. Her breath caught in her throat but it had nothing to do with the hair-do. Or at least not everything. It had more to do with the brief glimmer of amusement Rogue caught in her very own eyes, the way the corners of her lips were turned up in the smallest, most fragmented of smiles. But it was enough to catch something of the girl she had been from the past week, surely. It kinda shocked her this new realization, as she studied the pulled back auburn curls and the white bangs that was artfully twisted to not only frame her face and show off her cheekbones, but also some delicate strands were weaved back into the mass of auburn chestnut locks, leaving shimmering trails through her hair. But altogether the face of the woman before her was something Rogue had never felt quite right saying about herself before.

She was beautiful.

It was an astounding revelation, because it didn't really matter. It was like knowing your eyecolor, nice to know, pretty to look at, but overall... she was just more preoccupied with smiling back at the little girls eager to take their turns with the brushes and hairspray.

But it was nice... maybe knowing that she could be.

They made it back to the mansion with, of course, time to spare. Rogue had still moved back up to her room without talking to anybody. She really didn't want to deal with people. But it didn't look like she was going to get her wish as she found Bobby leaning against her door frame as she turned the corner.

She closed her eyes, her thoughts brushing against the thoughts of walking right on by and ignoring him, before she decided she wasn't going to run anymore. She might not have wanted to be with Bobby anymore, but this thing that they had hanging over their heads now wasn't helping her move on at all. Remy was right. And she was done blaming herself.

He actually looked a little startled at her up-front approach as she stopped in front of him, arms crossed over her chest as she stared him down unwavering. "Rogue, I-"

"Save it." She bit off harshly as she stepped forward, "and listen. We're done Bobby. What we had was good but you ruined that the second you cheated on me. But as far as I'm concerned we've been through since the moment you said we were through. And frankly, that doesn't bother me anymore. I was serious yesterday, I'm sick of us, I'm sick of you."

He looked like he was going to interrupt but she raised a warning hand between them, the threat clear in her eyes,"Interrupt me, and you'll be sleeping through the ceremony."

He visibly gulped and backed away a half step until he realized his back was already to the door. It was the first time Rogue had threatened him with her powers, and she took a sick sense of pleasure at the fear that flashed in his eyes, "But you know what Bobby? I don't care what you did or your reasons for it. It's in the past. I've moved on. I can forgive you for it and move on some more. But that doesn't mean you have to be a part of my life anymore."

She let him stew over that for a while as she drummed her fingers over her crossed arms, and when she saw the almost defeated look in his eys, she knew she had him.

"Rogue, are you going to tell Pete?" He looked like this was his final issue, like it was all he had left.

Rogue simply cocked her head to the side, gaze narrowed even further as she said sharply, "That's Kitty's job. Now if you'll excuse me, I've got a wedding to get ready for."

She didn't have to wait long for him to move away from the door, and she snapped it closed behind her with enough force that was a 'Keep Out' in it's own right. But she didn't really think she needed to say it anyway.

Even despite her little confrontation, she still felt numb inside. It was satisfying to see Bobby's face fall like that after yesterday, but it felt so much like a hollow victory. She moved mechanically around the room pulling the dress out of the bag from the bridal shop and she fingered the material thoughtfully as she thought back to trying it on the day before. She remembered watching Remy through the mirror, very similar to what she had done with Ororo today. She remembered where their conversation had turned and she thought about what he had said to her, his eyes shining bright. She closed her eyes briefly against the tears still trying to tug her down.

She pressed them down as she turned her gaze back to the pristine gloves she had laid out earlier, fingering them and lifting them against the dress itself. She was just about to put them on too, when her thoughts reflected on the dream she had the night before. The gloves were clenched in her hand as she thought about the repercussions of her actions. She was upset, no matter what kind of facade she put on, it wasn't going to fool her powers. So that meant, she would risk having to try. Even through the crowds of the reception. But once again, the blood red boquet flashed in her mind and he decision was made.

The white smooth material was a crumpled heap in the corner of one of her bags as she strode out the door of her room, dress and hair still perfectly in place as she strode downstairs to group with the others waiting for the photographer.

It was apparent by the end of the photo shoot that even though she was depressed, not all was alright in other people's worlds either. Namely Rahne.

Rahne had immediately jumped up and moved to her side the second she was out the door, and the bridal party quickly moved over to the gazebo as they posed ans smiled for the pictures. Or for Rogue it was a whole lot of enduring Wanda pinching her arm after a while and telling her to smile. The little girl had been alright for the most part, but had nearly thrown a fit when they wanted to take everyone but the maid of honor and the bride together. Wanda had actually had to pull the crying girl off of Rogue's leg, and she had proceeded to pout from the place out of camera shot where Wanda held her back.

So after she finally released from her mannequin like state, she quickly made her way to where the little girl was sitting on one of the benches that littered the yard, underneath the shade of an old tree. She swung her feet back and forth, but her head was hung dejectedly and she wouldn't even look up when Rogue knew her presence was known. Instead Rogue sat beside her in the quiet for a while, looking up as a gust of wind swayed the trees gently above them against the blue back drop of a cloudless sky. Perfect weather for a wedding.

She waited a little while as she glanced down to see Rahne nervously picking at her dress. "Sugar?"

Rahne finally glanced up at her behind her lashes. "There something you want to talk about, Rahne?"

Rahne diverted her gaze back down and she mumbled indistincly under her breath.

"What?" Rogue asked leaning down. This time she barely caught the words as they tumbled out, "You had a fight with Remy."

It wasn't a question and as she leaned back she felt herself give an involuntary gulp as the fact registered in her thoughts. Perceptive child. "Yeah."

Rahne shifted uneasily on the bench as she struggled to find the right words, "The last time... you got into a fight with Mr. Bobby-"

Rogue felt her mind jump back to the conversation she had just had compared to the one almost a year ago. The little voice beside her brought her back to the present, "-and you left after that. You left me after that."

"Oh sug," Rogue wrapped her arms around the little girl as she began to rock her back and forth, "That had nothin' to do with you. You are not the reason I left." She closed her eyes against her own tears as she felt Rahne shake in her arms. And once again she was falling into a familiar memory.

It shifted to depression, longing, loneliness.

She felt her brow furrow as the emotions registered and shifted to one particular event that rang out sharply. Abandonment as she saw what looked like her own figure leaving through the front door of the mansion. A child's tears as they slipped down her own cheeks.

She pulled away from the memory with a gasp that had Rahne looking up at her in her own shock. Rogue's face soon fell into a compassionate expression as she brushed tears away from the younger girl's face. "I'm sorry Sugar. I'm so sorry."

"Promise you won't leave this time?" Rahne looked up at he hopefully with an edge of desperation in her eyes. Rogue felt her heart melt just a bit as the words rang through her mind. Could she really stay? It wasn't like New Orleans was a small city. There was hardly a chance that she would ever run into him again. But could she really make her home here again, after so long?

She thought about it, remembering her quick departure when Bobby had broken the news to her. A lot of people must have thought she was just pulling a Logan and escaping for a few montsh just to come back later. She had never really felt that way though. When she left the gates of Xavier's that first time, she never thought she'd be back. But that was just her running again. Running away from the people who cared about her and what happened to her.

Finally she nodded slowly, "Yeah Sugar. If it's alright with 'Ro, I'll stay."

Rahne smiled brightly at her for this, but it faded a bit as she studied Rogue's still sad eyes. "Rogue?"

Rogue shook off her far off gaze and looked at her again, "You love Remy, don't you?"

Rogue felt the prinpricks of tears collect around her eyes that she fought off, "Yeah, Rahne. I do."

Rahnd hugged her tighter, burrying her head in Rogue's chest before whispering out, "I'm sorry."

Rogue just stroked the little girl's hair thoughtfully as she whispered out, "Me too."

The rest of the preparations passed in a mangled haze of taffeta and last minute hair pins. Before she knew it Rogue had been crammed into one of the cars and had been shipped off to the church with the other girls, but not before her long conversation with Ororo. Now the entire show was put on a standstill as they waited for the guests to arrive. Amidst the chaos as Kitty's other maids had flocked around her in the side room she was anxiously waiting in, Rogue had quietly slipped out and managed to get by the masses to the freedom of the fresh air outdoors. But she wasn't too surprised that Logan managed to find her as she sat on the back steps.

"Hey Kid," she looked up at him briefly, a ghost of a smile sweeping across her features before she looked back towards the buildings across the street. "I've been lookin' for you after 'Ro talked to me."

Rogue nodded as she let out a sigh, and scooted over to give him room to sit down. She had a feeling that this was going to be one of those 'Talks'.

He sat down beside her and she took in the oddity of seeing him in formal attire. "Ya look good in your tux, Logan."

He shook his head in obvious disgust as he tried to loosen the tight hold the tie had on his neck, "I swear Ororo has a secondary mutation of threatening."

This brushed against her with some humor as she replied with mock consideration, "Suppose that's handy when you're runnin' a school."

Logan was carefully studying her face, and the man knew her long enough to know when she was putting on a front. "Marie."

She looked up at him from the corner of her eyes, but as soon as their gazes locked she knew she wasn't going to be able to distract him. Logan was even more stubborn than her on occasion. And not one for subtlety."So why did you let him go?"

She let her gaze fall back down to the ground, her fingers interlocking and twisting with each other. "It's complicated." Her voice was low, almost too low for even his hearing.

"Ah," he looked back to the buildings that she had been gazing at and shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly, "Right, probably wouldn't have worked out anyway, huh? Why waste the effort? Rather cynical."

She shook her head with a tired sigh, still avoiding his gaze. "I'm not cynical, everything just sucks. I'm tired of runnin' Logan. You of all people should know how that feels."

He shook his head slowly with consideration but challenged, "Then what is it that you think you're doin', Darlin'?"

"I'm coming back!" She stood for a bit and paced in front of him, "I'm not hiding my life from anyone anymore. I'm not going to pretend to be happy-"

He cut her off before she could dive further into her tirade, "Then you're gonna be miserable?"

She was thrown off by his words and paused mid-step, so he gestured her back over, patting the vacant space beside him. Once she settled again he pressed on, "I've seen you with him Kid, and I can tell you right now you aren't pretendin' to be happy with him. You really are. And sure, I know all about runnin' when the times get tough."

He waited for the nod of her head to show that she understood before he went on, "But that's the thing Darlin', you're still running."

She opened her mouth to protest, but he quickly lifted a hand to keep her silent, "You're running from him."

Her mouth closed with a snap as she processed these thoughts, her eyes darting back and forth. Logan nodded as he saw her thinking about his words and he reached out and squeezed the hand closest to him. "You spend a lot of time worryin' about what people are goin' to think about you Rogue. Whether it be your powers or about your life choices. But if you keep letting your worries be the deciding factor in your life, you're always gonna be livin' your life from somebody else's perspective. And you are not goin' to be happy. You'll just be worried about how the end result is going to hurt you."

She looked him directly into his eyes and she wondered where the gruff guy that worked on car motors went to and left her with this guy sprouting off Dr. Phil quotes.

"So what do you think Kid? Is he the guy for you?"

Slowly she nodded her head, a faint smile appearing on her face. He smiled back at her.

"So stop runnin, and go and get the stinkin' Cajun."

She smiled broadly here, and she briefly glanced up at the parking lot surrounding them, her eyes landing on one particular vehicle. Her next question threw him off a bit.

"Ya still know how to hotwire cars, right?"

He answered her with his brow furrowed and his reply drawn out warily, "Yeah…"

"Good," and an honest-to-goodness smirk appeared over her face as she leaned into him, quickly pressing a peck to his cheek that left him with a wave of vertigo briefly. When his eyesight cleared up, he had a smirk of his own as he watched Rogue make quick work of the awaiting wedding car, cans and foam already lacing the body of the convertible as she started the motor with a satisfied roar. He stood and watched as she pulled away from the church parking lot rather quickly, already turned in the direction of the mansion as she sped away.

Kitty was beyond nervous. She was on the very edge of her sanity. All day long she had received the cold shoulder from her friends, but in all honesty she couldn't blame them. Especially Rogue…

She was glad that an oblivious Ororo stuck close to her side as she jumped at the littlest things. She supposed that the thoughtful headmistress just chalked it up to cold feet. Kitty felt like screaming her confession from the rafters of the church every time the weather witch shot her another pitying look. She watched almost with a detached wonder as she watched her shaking hands raise the earrings her mother had given her to wear just that morning. But as her fingertips raised the antique pearl studs, her fingertips brushing against her lobes, she caught her reflection in the mirror. Good God, she hadn't even realized she was crying.

She set the earring back down on the vanity table as her hands clenched the side of the table for support, and she sealed her eyes shut. Rogue's words from the night before rang in her mind, and the tears quickly picked up speed. There was no way she could do this anymore.

"Kitty?" She felt Ororo grip her shoulder, concern leaking off her tone. "Are you alright?"

Kitty restrained the sob that wanted to wrench itself from her chest, as she shook her head, and finally steeling herself she turned to face Ororo. "Could you find Rogue for me please? I need to talk to her."

Ororo stood there studying her face for a few moments until nodding silently and slipping back out of the little room's door. Kitty turned back to the vanity and slowly sank down on the bench as she felt all the strength leave her legs.

She felt the guilt crush then in wave after wave, as memories flashed through her mind, only driving herself even more into her torment. 'I don't deserve any of this!' her mind screamed it at her, louder than any cry she could muster from her own throat at the moment.

She remembered the first time she kissed Bobby. She was still lost as to how it could have happened. He had been there, trying his best to cheer her up after the professor's death. She just got so caught up when she felt his arms around her, steadying her like a rock. It was like his arms were buoying her up, when she felt her whole world sinking in around her. She wanted to feel safe. If the Professor, the one man that had always been such a constant in their lives at Xavier's could be that vulnerable, who's to say that she wouldn't crumble and fall one day? She wanted to feel loved, like someone would miss her if she were gone. She wanted that fairytale romance.

Bobby had seemed to offer that, riding in like her white knight on a pair of ice skates. At first she had been caught up in the thrill of it, the whispered words, the soft touches on her face that he seemed to treasure. It had been a heady mixture, sneaking around the others and being showered with his devotion. She did feel guilt as she watched him with Rogue, but the promise that Bobby offered every time he kissed her wiped her thoughts away. But it wasn't long before she realized the buoying force that she thought was holding her up was dragging her under.

She watched as the newly 'cured' Rogue would refuse all his advances, claiming wanting to take things slow. And with every refusal she watched as her knight in shining armor got more and more frustrated. It was then that Kitty realized that Bobby was the type that needed to be a hero. That he had devoted and tied himself to Rogue when she couldn't touch him, just a wandering soul. But Rogue was stronger than that, and getting the cure just seemed to proclaim that even more. So in turn, Bobby spent more time with Kitty, with hero-worship still bright in her eyes, blinding her to almost everything else. And the more time she spent with him, the more she began to wake up. She let him slip past her defenses and her worries, trusting that he wouldn't let her fall.

But the truth began to shatter little fantasy when Rogue's powers began returning, and Bobby seemed to renew his energy in pursuing Rogue. And she realized it then. Bobby would be the bigger hero if he stayed with Rogue, if he was more devoted to her even with her skin. But Rogue wouldn't let him win her like a prize. She saw Bobby's attempts as an insult, like a statement that she would never get control. And maybe it was. And even as he finally gave up hope with making things work with Rogue and began breaking things off with her, claiming the 'touch issue', Kitty's heart was breaking. She did blame herself for the rift and break in their relationship, but it was still the knowledge that Bobby was still trying to keep that relationship while still holding her at night that made her realize she would always just be second place in his heart. It was thoughts like these that only drove her to crying herself to sleep at night.

When Rogue had finally left the mansion it was the breaking point for her in more ways than one. Despite what she wanted, an open, real relationship, Bobby always kept them in the dark, seemingly ashamed of their actions, of her. And then the fact that she had helped drive her best friend away from her home at her most vulnerable time killed her. She stopped eating dinners with the others, secluding herself from the others. A lot of people thought that she was just missing her best friend; instead she was up late at night worrying if Rogue was even alive out there. Because if she wasn't, Kitty only had herself to blame. On one occasion Jubilee even forced her down to see Hank after she spent weeks a deathly pale shade.

And the tensions began to grow between her and Bobby. She couldn't seem to keep him happy anymore, despite their frequent nightly visits. She was like a new toy that had quickly lost its luster, and all the while she felt her heart breaking even more. It was then that she realized that her rescuing knight was the one keeping her imprisoned in that high tower, secluding her from the world. And it wasn't getting any better as the guilt and blame seemed to grow between them. Even without her being physically there, Rogue's presence was all but tangible. Finally it became too much for her, and she broke it off. Despite their initial misgivings and distrust, Jubilee and Wanda were her only support during those long months where no one could understand her new heartbreak. Eventually she guessed her misery must have become just too pitiable.

And then Piotr came striding through the door, her best friend for so long. He didn't ask questions, he didn't come sweeping in as a shining knight (despite the armor), but simply as the guy who would sit with her in the quiet and hand a tissue to swipe at her bleary eyes. As the weeks went by they grew closer, and though they shared many personal secrets about their lives, she never mentioned her relationship with Bobby. She was afraid that this newfound trust would shatter, that he would never look at her the same way again and would leave her in the dust. And as the months passed and their friendship grew into something more, she found that she couldn't bear the thought of losing him. She found that she didn't need the hero, just the man that wasn't ashamed to hold her out in the open and openly adore her, that she could love back. She relished in this new relationship, so much so that her time with Bobby faded to a twisted dream in the back of her mind.

Until the day that Pete proposed. That Christmas Day would always remain as a bittersweet blaze on her memory. She was so happy that she knew she was shaking and crying as the 'Yes!' came tumbling out of her lips and the morning was a blur of ecstasy and excitement. It was quickly dimmed when in the afternoon she was roughly pulled into a closet in the empty hallway she had been walking down. When she had instantly tensed on the defensive when she recognized Bobby she was cut off from making any protests or accusations when he instantly slammed his lips onto hers, violently bruising in his fervor. She had quickly pushed him away, both hurt and confused, but before she could even ask he had snapped open the door and stormed away. It became the first of many such encounters where he would take her by surprise, and they began to scare her. She at first thought that this was punishment for ruining his relationship with Rogue, but it soon became apparent that a new game was being played. Apparently the toy had been polished and looked brand new again, since she was officially off the market and forbidden fruit. After the first few encounters, she finally turned tentatively to Wanda and Jubilee, who after a confrontation of their own involving a six hour long danger room session, had put an end to kissing 'hit and runs'. For a while one of them was always sure to stick close to her side, but Bobby didn't make any active approach towards her after that. But a determined Bobby wouldn't be dismissed, and that didn't keep him from acting passively. She had been on edge since the beginning of the wedding planning, torn in two about the prospect of coming clean to Pete or continuing to live with Bobby's aggressive advances.

Then Wanda had called Rogue, and for the first time in a while, Kitty had found a bright spot in her life. She was thrilled with the prospect of Rogue being safe, happy, and possibly in love, and maybe it was selfish, but it eased her guilt a bit. If Rogue could be happy then she could deal with any of the crap Bobby pushed on her. Her nervous attitude had almost stopped Rogue from coming up here, but how could she refuse Rogue if she really wanted to be the Maid of Honor? She had asked her out of common courtesy (even if Rogue was really one of her best friends); she hadn't truly expected that the striped-haired woman would accept as she hadn't returned once since leaving the mansion. When she had come to the mansion's doors, with a good looking love interest, and happily gaining control, Kitty could have cried tears of joy right on the spot. She couldn't see anyone at the mansion begrudging Rogue her happiness after such a long time of suffering the woman had been through, but apparently she was wrong.

Bobby was seething.

She didn't know if it was her continual refusal of his advances, seeing Rogue happy in another man's arms, obviously able to touch her without hindrance, or maybe a combination of both but Bobby appeared to have snapped. She just never thought he'd ever go so low as to deliberately hurt Rogue like that only to get to them both. Her with her guilt and once again breaking Rogue's heart. She felt even worse when she realized that she caused Rogue yet again to lose another relationship, but her fear at what Rogue would do to get back at her pressed her to beg Rogue not to tell Piotr. After all this time, to lose him now would have shattered her. But Kitty couldn't even express the overwhelming guilt that was hitting her now as Rogue's words rang oh so very true in her ears now. And the clenching in her gut told her there was no way she was going to be able to do this with this veritable ax looming over her head.

Her musings were finally broken when Ororo's soft coughing caught her attention, and she finally looked up into the weather witch's eyes only to feel her heart fall.

"I'm sorry Kitty, but it appears that Rogue has left," and the headmistress's eyes were truly sympathetic as the young bride drew in sharply.

"Left?" Kitty felt the word trembling on her lips, wavering in her voice with the flood of tears threatening to come.

Ororo nodded as she came over to kneel in front of her, trying to dab at the tear trails with a swept up tissue. "We don't know if she'll be back in time for the ceremony."

And that was like the door was closing in on the last bit of rays of hope for Kitty that day. She couldn't stand it. Her best friend was completely unable to stand her presence, had run away. It was the final stab to the defense she had built up, and she finally resigned herself to her fate as she took in a steadying breath before she looked Ororo in the eyes.

"Then could you go get Pete for me?"

Ororo's eyes widened slightly in alarm, but quickly became settled once she saw the determined set of Kitty's face. Giving her one last lingering look, she finally nodded and rose going back out the door.

Kitty rose herself, and paced the room as she tried to steady her breathing. This was her last chance and she was going to take it. She was done lying to Pete. She loved him, and if he felt like she didn't deserve him after this, no matter how unbearable the thought may be, she would let him go. Rogue was right, and she couldn't build a marriage started off on lies.

All too soon there was a knocking at her door and Piotr stuck his head into the room with one hand covering his eyes as he questioned, "Katya? Ororo said you wanted to see me."

She took one final breath before stepping forward drawing him into the room and shutting the door behind them to leave them alone, "I did. Pete," she said softly tugging at the hands trying to cover his eyes, "look at me."

He still wore a playful smile that was slowly but surely breaking what little remained of her heart, as he childishly scolded, "Nuh-uh, Katya, it is bad luck to see the bride before the wedding."

She struggled with his hands more fiercely, but her tone came out tearful and somber and must have been what truly caught his attention. "Piotr."

His brow furrowed, and he slowly drew his hands down with hers resting on top of them, his deep brown eyes filled with concern. She spent a moment, committing his loving, concerned face to memory before she took a deep breath, fluttering her eyes shut and licking her dry lips before her soft voice cracked a bit, "We need to talk…"

Rogue was sure there was a God up there somewhere, because she didn't see one cop on the way back to the mansion. Which was good, considering at the speed she was going she was making the jet look slow. But it still didn't feel fast enough, and it was aggravating the heck out of her. She felt like some invisible force was pulling her back constantly, and she briefly wondered if it was her own nerves. But the moment that another bubble of panic would spring up, threatening her with taunting doubts, she found herself enveloped in a mental image of a pair of flashing red eyes and the calm determination would wash over her again.

Then the mental image would shift down to those inviting lips again and she wound up driving even faster.

But she found herself quickly pulling down the driveway of the Xavier Institute, this time only dimly aware of the shocked looks she was receiving from the younger students that couldn't make it to the wedding. She didn't bother parking in the garage. It was further from the wooded path that would lead to the boathouse then she would have liked it to be at the moment. She was surprised that she managed to cut the engine off while she was springing out the door of the car. The bright silver high heels obviously had to go as she began running through the grass, and she kicked them off with little abandon, distractedly scooping them up as the grass brushed past the long skirt and her bare feet. She was virtually flying down the path now, the wind and twigs trying to snag at her hair.

She didn't notice.

All her attention was bulls-eyed onto the little boathouse that was almost hidden completely out of sight from the mansion, the edge of the lake lapping water very close to the back door.

She heard as her footfalls pound on the wooden floorboards of the porch, her breath ragged in her throat. Mentioning her throat, it felt like all her anticipation had pooled there, and the excited flickering of her smile belied her nervousness as she gripped the doorknob with a slightly sweaty palm. She twisted it open without restraint, not even worried with whether it would be locked or not; it never was. She breathlessly shoved the door open, her head peering inside as his name fell from her lips, "Remy…"

No one was there.

She could plainly see that from the loft like styling of the little abode, the floor plan completely lying open and in view of the front doorway. She paused at the open door, rooted to the spot as she observed the tidiness and well-kept manner the living environment. She thought briefly that she had been mistaken, that he had been staying in one of the rooms of the mansion instead, but then her eyes fell on the eerily familiar manila envelope folded on the bed.

She slowly moved away from the still gaping doorway, a summer wind breezing softly into the room and raising a few of the curls around her face. She felt every beat of her heart consume her movements, every footfall in sync with the marching drum roll running through her ears as she came ever closer to the tawny-gold envelope, with her name scrawled across it in slanted letters. She reached for it with a trembling hand and felt the tears in her eyes already as she lifted it up for closer examination, feeling the hefty weight of it settle in her hands as she turned it over to find more writing on the other side.

If felt like six thousand dollars.

It's all there. Trust me.

She felt the tears begin to spill out as one of her fingers traced the neat uppercase 'T', but she soon let the hand fall away with an exasperated sigh, closing her eyes as she tried to will back the waterworks.

She had missed him.

Dieu, he missed her.

Remy felt it press against his mind as the roaring wind ripped around his head, leaning more into the curve as he sped down the road. Even without her there beside him, her presence seemed to be emblazoned everywhere. The green foliage that he passed by at a blur of motion only reminded him of her eyes flashing up at him. He had sworn on more than one occasion he thought he heard her laugh sweeping off in the distance, just out of his line of sight. And on the motorcycle, he distinctly felt the aching loneliness, missing where her arms should have been wrapped around his chest.

Memories of them buzzed around him, weaving through his subconscious to the forefront of him mind without any warning, his mind grasping at little details.

"So that's why y' left?"She turned back to him and gave him the ever so painful, bittersweet smile.

"It was time for another change. Besides, I missed the South."

…

And at that moment he didn't really care about her mutation. She was hurt, and it was killing him to see her beating herself up over what other people thought about her life. So he just drew her back closer to him and gently wiped away the tears that had finally pooled out of her eyes.

It was the first time he had ever touched her bare skin.

...

"Swamp Rat?"

"Mmm-hmm. That's right." She smiled leisurely back at him.

"Why am I a Swamp Rat?"

"Cause you're a rat from Louisiana. Swamp Rat." She stated matter-of-factly as if that settled the subject.

…

"Rogue, Chere, are y' okay?" He felt the renewed concern pick at him, as she finally arrived before him. She smiled unabashedly up at him, one of her hands reached up and trailing a line from the collar of his trench coat down a ways over his chest. He had to fight the shiver wanting run down his spine from her electric touch as he caught her emerald green eyes staring up at him from behind long lashes. A small predatorial smirk graced her lips as she removed her hand and replied, "Never better."

…

He could feel the heat of her breath hitting the back of his neck as she chuckled and he fought the need to swallow past the sudden dryness in his mouth.

"What is it with you and cards?" Her sweet Southern draw came out with avid amusement as she waited for his response. It sounded like smooth honey.

He didn't respond instantly, instead taking the hand resting on the back of his chair and pressing a quick kiss into her palm. "I have an addiction to vices. Care to be my new fix?"

…

He completely released the hold on her wrist so that his hand could pull her chin up so that she met his gaze, "Who de hell told y' you weren't beautiful?"

…

Slowly her eyes opened, fluttering lashes revealing deep green pools. He instantly sighed in relief burrowing his head into her hair, inhaling her scent. God she'd scared him. He raised his head up just enough to look her in the eyes,"Y' okay?"

…

"You don't deserve to be used and thrown away Remy."

…

He took a sick pleasure in the pain that rippled through his chest when he thought about it. So much so that he thought it again.

He, Remy LeBeau, was in love with Rogue.

The sudden honking in front of him snapped him back into the present like lightning and he muttered a curse as he swung out of the way of the truck speeding towards him. His heart beat faster in his ears as the guy drove on, calling out a cussing out of his window on his way. Remy shook his head to clear it as he began pulling over to the side of the road. He practically leaped off the bike in his frustration, yanking off the helmet and tossing it away from himself, raking his hands through his hair. He began pacing along the edge of the road, brow furrowed.

There weren't enough cuss words in either the English or French languages to vent his confusion and frustration. There was just no way to get the femme out of his head!

He paused his pacing as a bitter laugh escaped his throat. Here he was, Remy LeBeau himself, the Ragin' Cajun, breaker of hearts, the dark, menacing thief Gambit, and he was bemoaning the loss of a woman who had no idea he was in love with her.

He mused on that, his thoughts in a circle around the night he realized he was in love with the Southern Belle, until finally he glanced back at the bike and then the open road he was traveling on. And he muttered a final curse as he went to pick the helmet up before getting back on the bike and pointing it in the opposite direction.

She may sic Logan on him on sight, but God damn it, Remy LeBeau wasn't going to run off like some coward before Rogue knew he loved her.

Kitty felt the tears that she had been repressing the whole confession trailing down her face one by one as she watched for Piotr's reaction. He was obviously shocked, his whole frame going rigid very soon into her admission, and he had remained tight jawed to the very end of her speech. Now she was waiting desperately praying on the inside that she hadn't just drove the love of her life away forever.

Slowly he worked his jaw open slightly shaking his head and closing his eyes as he began quietly, the words sounding strained, "I knew you were seeing someone before we got together," here he started shaking his head and Kitty felt her heart crumbling and being stomped upon, "but not Bobby."

He paused for a minute, a considering look on his face as he looked away before he half-turned towards her, and she caught the anger and pain building up behind his eyes and her breath caught in her throat, "Does Rogue know?"

She sniffed a little pathetically to her own ears as she glanced down ashamedly, and said in a whisper he was barely able to hear, "Bobby told her last night."

Realization cleared over his features briefly, before his face became set in a barely held in rage and she shrank back from him on instinct as he stepped towards her. She might have seen a flash of pain at her reaction flash across his face before he roughly said, "Excuse me."

With that he swept out the door without another word, and the tears started streaming down her face faster as she watched him disappear behind the door, her hopes crashing to the floor and shattering before her very eyes.

Indy, Ashy… this part's for both of you. Sorry Blue, they specifically asked for it though.

Bobby was, well, he wouldn't call it sulking, since no one was aware that he was brooding over the impending wedding and his failure in stopping it, but though on the outside he looked perfectly relaxed on the inside he was anything but.

He just hoped that his pacing down the aisle didn't give him away. Occasionally when one of the guests would smile his way, particularly that visiting headmistress friend of Ororo's who seemed to like the color white, he would shoot them his best grin, playing the part of supporting Best Man to a 'T'. But on his last lap to the back a noise caught him off guard and made him pause.

Click.

Click.

He knew that noise. And it was getting closer.

Click.

He swiveled around on his heel, his eyes widening, to find Wanda hanging off the arm of a man to whom the clicking lighter belonged to. An awfully familiar man.

"Pyro?"

"Hey there Iceman." The smile on the pyromaniac's face was downright devious as he sized up the man before him. It only widened when the realization alighted Bobby's face that the two people who probably detested him the most was blocking his only exit. "Still scared of a fight Bobby? 'Cause my Sheila here informed me of a very interesting little story about you, Roguey, and Kitty-cat."

His arm tightened around Wanda's waist, whose own features took on a decidedly sly look with her wicked grin as she took in Bobby's growing apprehension. "Something wrong, Popsicle Stick?"

Before Bobby could even narrow his glare or gulp in fear John got right up in his face, menacing, wild, even slightly crazed look flashing through his bright eyes as his low voice hissed out, "Now out of respect of Kitty's big day, I'll give you an option. Do you want your burning now, or later?"

Bobby began stealthily sliding back away from the fire-bug mutant, who he knew was already itching for a rematch after Alcatraz and was probably newly incited with whatever stories Wanda had been telling him. Seriously, who let those two in a room together?

Somewhere at a computer screen a girl laughed wickedly as the following events ensued.

He was distracted from his retreat when all of the sudden, the doorway to the alcoves the girls had been using was suddenly thrown open, and Piotr strode out. For a brief minute he stood there with his gaze roving the entire chapel, but all too soon his eyes locked with Bobby's already widened stare, and murder flashed through the normally passive Russian man's eyes before steel resolve settled over him. Literally. And as soon as Bobby saw the other man armor up, he knew one thing.

He was screwed.

Bobby reacted on instinct, using Piotr's entrance as distraction enough to throw out a beam that froze the lighter in John's hand, to which the other man let out a startled cry. He used Pyro's surprise to turn the man around as a human shield briefly from the oncoming freight train that was the groom. Now both men were scowling down at him with hostility in their eyes, and quickly approaching. Bobby bolted for the exit, moving past the protesting guests as they were quickly shoved out of his way. He was almost home free to the exit when he realized he was forgetting something.

Wanda. And the Scarlet Witch was not happy.

As he was just about to the threshold, warm air just bathing his face and in reach of his fingertips and two lethal men on his heels, blue sparks filled with crackling energy seized his ankles, sending him sprawling and tumbling out the doorway and leaving every opportunity for the men following him.

"Wanda!" an enraged and slightly exasperated call was the only thing that the watching guests could decipher from the man's startled yelp. But when they looked up at the accused bridesmaid, she was smiling innocently (if her eyes hadn't been glinting mischievously) and pointing down to the little auburn haired flower girl standing (and giggling) in front of her.

The two men on hot pursuit hadn't really noticed this, with only the prospect of easy prey entering their minds, but the hot-headed Aussie was suddenly yanked back in through the door to his utter surprise. He frowned at the brunette woman in confusion, until she grabbed his hand with the still frozen lighter and running a sparkling blue hand over it, completely unfroze the metal object. She actually had it open with a flame dancing ready as she handed it back over. With that, and a decidedly wicked smirk, she placed the lighter in the stunned man's hand before reaching up and leaving a lingering peck on his lips before backing away and smiling brightly, waving towards the unblocked exit invitingly, "Now you can go kill him."

His shock gave way to a brilliant smile before he leaned in for a positively searing kiss and pulled away with raised eyebrows, "Seriously, will ya go out with meh?"

Wanda began to laugh, but they were cut off as they heard a sudden yelp came from outside. The pyromaniac shot her one last wicked grin before a fireball the size of his fist grew on his palm and he went striding out the door, calling in a sing-song voice, "Hey Petey, let me help you out with that!"

Rogue pulled back up to the church going much more slowly in her disheartened state. She fished around in the floorboards briefly for her slightly crumpled bouquet, before rising up again, and that's when she noticed that something was off. For one thing, there wasn't scorch marks on the parking lot when she had left. Or what was once a shell of a car setting off to the side that suspiciously looked like Bobby's.

She moved out of the car slowly, eyeing off the mixed up group that had gathered at the front doors of the church, some looking off warily down the street. As she moved closer she easily picked out Wanda and John, whose tux looked like it had seen better days, as they leaned together, arms wrapped around each other. They both significantly straightened when they saw her coming, and Wanda instantly broke away to race up and hug her.

"Rogue where have you been? Are you alright?" Wanda's tune instantly changed to concern when she caught Rogue's fallen face but the striped-haired woman quickly waved her off, changing the subject.

"I'm fine, but what happened here?" Wanda looked her directly in the eyes and Rogue knew it was serious.

"Kitty told Piotr." That was all the information Rogue needed for her eyes to widen with shock, but before she could speak John intruded on their conversation.

"An' then, after Wands tol' me what happened, me and Piotr decided that Bobby needed to learn a little lesson," he smiled proudly at the destruction around them. "I ended up tiring him down enough that he actually ran out of ice, so he made a beeline for that ride of his, but Petey made short work of that. After that, I figured the groom could use some venting time and they took off into town, Bobby barely fleeing in front of Petey's wrath."

Wanda rolled her eyes as she elbowed him in the ribs, "It helps that your lighter got destroyed in the process of trashing Bobby's car."

He casually shrugged a shoulder, looping his arm around her as he went, "It might have had something to do with that."

Wanda shook her head, but turned back to Rogue seriously for a moment, even if she was hesitant, "Kitty's been asking for you. I think… I think maybe you should go talk to her."

Rogue froze for a moment before she stiffly nodded and moved past some of the debris and crept into the church. Soon she was standing before the door she knew lead to Kitty's little chamber, and hesitantly she knocked. There was no reply from within, but after a moment she just went in anyway.

Kitty looked up from where she sat on the vanity bench, and even though Rogue herself was hurt, she felt a little sympathy for the sobbing bride in front of her. This wedding day was supposed to be the most important day of her life. Kitty smiled a bitterly at her as she shook her head, her voice wavering, "I've made a pretty big mess, haven't I?"

She gave a mangled laugh as she twisted the already worn tissue being wrung in her hands a little tighter. Rogue crept closer into the room, finally until she crouched in front of the younger woman, where she had her head bowed unable to meet her eyes. Slowly Rogue reached out, gently tucking a few loose strands out of the girl's face. At this tender reaction, Kitty raised her sorrowful eyes to Rogue's studying green orbs as she breathlessly whispered, "I am so sorry Rogue. I really am. I'm just," she hiccupped as she started on another new sob, "so sorry."

Rogue was swiftly pulled into the final part of her dream from a few nights before, and she felt her own tears glisten as the emotions washed over her.

The light shifted again to guilt. Deep rooted in her chest whenever she looked at him (she briefly caught a glimpse of Piotr and then herself) and remembered the girl with white stripes.

What had she done?

Rogue, despite all the pain of the past two days, felt the corners of her lips twitch up in reply before she reached her arms around the other woman, embracing her. "That's all I wanted to hear Kit."

Kitty sobbed some more into Rogue's shoulder as her breath caught on her words, and they rocked back and forth in that hold for a while before Kitty pulled it together enough to try to make complete sentences, "An- and Pete hates me now. But it's all that I deserve. I don't ev-even think there's gonna be a wed-wedding now."

Rogue pulled back away from her, gently cooing, and brushing a few remaining tears away from her face, "Shh, that's not true. I doubt he'd be tryin' to murder Bobby if he didn't love ya."

It got the desired reaction as Kitty bit out a sharp little laugh as she tried to pull herself together, and Rogue pressed on, "I'm sure he'll be back. So ya just need to freshen up, get yourself calmed down. I'll wait out front for him, okay?"

"Are you sure, Rogue?" Kitty was still trying unsuccessfully to drive the tears away as Rogue stood up. Rogue shot her a reassuring smile as she began to turn around. But Kitty's voice called her back, "Rogue, are you sure you forgive me?"

Rogue looked back on her with compassionate eyes, "Yeah Kit, I'm sure. I've been over Bobby for a while now, I guess I just wish you had told me. That's what hurt the most."

Kitty nodded, her expression grateful as she full-heartedly replied, "I'm still sorry, but…thank you."

Rogue nodded again before she slipped back out the door, on her way to tell the others to wait inside. If all else failed, she could always send Logan after the missing groom.

Remy LeBeau was sure that he had finally gone insane.

Because he swore he just saw Piotr Rasputin just try run down one Bobby Drake like a battering ram.

He quickly slowed down on the bike twisting it around so he followed them at a close pace. He eventually pulled up alongside Pete, just trailing along at a snail's pace as the other man unsteeled beside him, and finally revealed how tired he was by his labored breathing. Remy did a bit of quick math in his head and he figured the metal giant had a right to be, they were at least three miles away from the church. And even with so many Danger Room sessions, there was only so much a body could take. Finally Piotr pulled up to a stop, hands resting on his knees as he took in great gulps of air before he laughed shakily, "I must look like a fool."

"Ouias, kinda." Remy smirked good-naturedly at the other man before tossing him what had originally been his helmet, "C'mon Pete, he's half way to Boston by now."

And sure enough, Bobby was further down the road than they were and still attempting to go further in his desperation. Pete came up slowly, trudging tiredly as he leaned against the bike, and Remy lifted a brow, "Unless, y' know, dis would make y' feel better…"

Here he trailed off and instead, revved the motor a bit, and they both watched with obvious amusement as Bobby squealed, and attempted to use his powers, finally managing to start the foundation of what looked like an extremely wobbly looking ice bridge. Piotr shook his head, still unable to reply as he continued to breath.

So Remy smirked, his eyes taking on a devilish glow as he replied, "Bon, den we'll do somethin' dat makes moi feel better."

And with that he ignited a single card, that his mind barely registered as the King of Hearts, before he sent it spiraling in Bobby's direction, lightly touching the shaky ice foundation before the explosion went off with a satisfying boom, sending Bobby flying through the air.

They both smirked at this, very pleased with his moans before they noted that he still managed to stand back up, still in the process of fleeing. Piotr shook his head again, finally able to speak, and his expression said a whole lot more.

"I'm still very angry with him." The tone was clipped, and Remy nodded his understanding as he gazed at Bobby with equal dislike. But right now it just didn't seem that important anymore. He turned back to Piotr, brows raised, "I thought you had a wedding to get to homme?"

And Piotr moved to answer one arm already raised in Bobby's general direction, but Remy cut him off, "Listen, I know she's worth fighting for, believe me I do," and Piotr could pick-up that maybe they weren't just talking about Kitty anymore, "mais, you have to ask yourself, is he worth losing her over?"

Piotr swallowed his earlier reply, and Remy shifted on the bike so that he could lean more comfortably against it. "I just don't know where we go from here my friend. "

Remy nodded sympathetically and sighed himself as he thought about his own situation. How he had been running from Rogue just because he was scared she wouldn't return his feelings and would shun him for what he was like so many others before. But never had she given him reason to doubt her like that. He smiled as his realized that she had to be the most accepting, craziest person alive to deal with some of the crap he'd told her. It helped him think of his next words about how he'd almost left all that behind.

He clapped a hand on the other man's shoulder, "The hardest thing is loving someone and then having the courage to let them love you back. But if you know her merde and she knows yours, and at the end of the day if you still would rather give up than try,… nothing's ever goin' to be worth it."

He watched as Piotr pondered his words and he went on in true Remy LeBeau fashion, with his smirk spreading, "Look at it this way… you go back, you get to spend the rest of your life having really great makeup sex."

Piotr finally lifted his head back up and returned his own smirk to him.

The sound of a motorcycle was what caught Rogue's attention as she leaned against the side of the church anxiously. Her eyes zeroed in on it as it came storming down the street before pulling up into the parking lot, her eyes widening as she recognized the bike. And more importantly, the people riding it.

Piotr, tux disorganized and even a little stretched, quickly leapt off the back of the bike, tossing back the borrowed helmet as he came sprinting past Rogue. She was so startled that she called out his name with confusion marring her tone, "Pete?"

"Sorry, must run!" He heaved over his shoulder as he dashed into the church. She narrowed her brow a little shocked and worried about what exactly he had done with Bobby.

But as she turned around all thoughts about Bobby's fate dissipated. Heck, the whole wedding-affair nonsense might has well have been background music. Because sitting there on that bike staring at her was Remy LeBeau.

She felt her heart give a stuttering leap as their gazes locked and it felt like they were just frozen there for an instant. She tried to pick up any sound, but he had cut the motor off and the streets were practically abandoned. It was like there was nothing else in the world but them. Finally, like it was in slow motion, he stood up from the bike and as he began moving towards her, she felt her feet thankfully move of their own accord.

When they were just close enough to reach out to each other she froze once more, a little unsure as she gazed mesmerized and a bit breathless into his eyes. She was slightly worried that she was going to get that heart attack she had predicted Jubilee getting so long ago, even if it was only a week.

A silence hung over them as he gazed at her too, and she was completely thankful and astounded that all she saw in his eyes was the same tender affection that she had recognized from time to time during the week. It's intensity still burned into her mind from the night of the bachelorette party. Finally he said the first words.

Or rather, word.

"Hey." It was that dusky baritone that she had not expected to hear again.

"Hey," her reply sounded rather breathless as her eyes searched his.

He licked his lips, and finally reached out for her, and his rough warm hands traced down her exposed arms, so very much like the image from her dream, until finally he reached her hands, taking them and holding them in his own as he began.

"Last night when we were fightin', I thought dis was over. And I was jus' going to leave y' alone an' take off."

Her entire being was focused on him using the past tense in all these sentences, and she felt her heart hanging on every word as he went on, honesty and conviction bright in his eyes as he said matter-of-factly, "But then I realized, I'd rather fight wit' y', then make love with anyone else."

And she did feel her breath catch then, and her eyes feel with hope as the word love hit her, overflowing within her. She caught the tender intensity still burning in his eyes as he pulled her closer, releasing one of her hands so that he could cup her face, and she finally recognized that unnamed emotion shining in his eyes as she leaned into his touch. She just hoped he could see it shining back in her eyes as he lowered his head ever closer to her as he went on.

"Because de truth is Anna Marie," she felt her heart skip a beat as she looked into his eyes, "dat I love y' Rogue."

She felt his fingers stroke along her cheek but before he could close the distance between them, she quickly caught his attention and surprise, when she said, "I love you too, Remy."

She saw the joy that was soaring through her own veins leap into his eyes, before the distance between them was gone and his mouth was caressing hers like he never had before. The kiss was everything that made her heart beat faster and her breath escape her, with his hand going back behind her head to draw her closer, and her hands becoming wedged between them resting comfortably on his chest.

Remy couldn't believe it. He couldn't. But you know what? It didn't matter if he believed it or not, because as soon as those words left Rogue's mouth he had decided it.

He was never leaving Rogue's side again if he could help it. And knowing him, he could probably get away with it too.

All too soon they were pulling away again, and he rested his forehead against hers and proudly watched as her eyelids slowly fluttered open. He used the hand that wasn't slipped around her waist to tuck a few wayward strands of hair out of her face, all the while weighing her reaction to his next words, "I should get going."

He watched as her eyes widened in alarm and her hands tightened on his trench coat, "No, no, no, you can't!"

"I have to," he pressed, but he couldn't stand the pain that briefly flashed through her eyes so he quickly pecked her lips before going on with a smirk, "I'm de Best Man."

He watched as he drew away a bit and relished it as her shock slowly unfolded into joy as he laced their fingers together and quickly began drawing them inside the church where Piotr was having a similar makeup with Kitty.

Blue, this is why this is your chapter. Hope you like it girl. ;)

You can dance -every dance- with the guy

Who gives you the eye, let him hold you tight

The guests were just settling in from the uproar that had been going on all morning when finally the long awaited groom appeared at the side of the more than slightly ruffled officiate. When they had moved on from this surprise, noting that he now looked rather cleaned up for a guy who just initiated a parking lot brawl, the muic preluding the wedding march began to flow out from the pianist's nimble fingers.

You can smile -every smile- for the man

Who held your hand neath the pale moonlight

All heads turned as the two little flower girls began their descent, both smiling broadly at the cooing and aweing they were recieving as the petals floated off their fingertips. Piotr shot them both an affectionate smile as they came to their place at the head of the aisle flawlessly, and every one was once again turned back to the proceeding bridesmaids, Tabitha on a broadly grinning Sam Guthrie's arm, quickly followed by a slightly pouting Jubilee. She had been stuck with Piotr's rather cute, single cousin, which was good. What was bad was that he didn't understand a word of English. Wanda trailed after her on Piotr's older brother's arm, but as soon as she came to the head of the aisle she sent a broad smile at the slick-back haired man sitting on the first few pews, who sent an answering wink her way.

But don't forget who's taking you home

And in whose arms you're gonna be

So darlin' save the last dance for me

Many of the attending guests from Xavier's were left slack-jawed as the Maid of Honor and the Best Man took their places at the back of the aisle. They were even more shocked when they were seen broadly smiling at one another, like the whole world was nonexistent. But whatever the situation was, it was evident that Remy had been in a rush to get it together, as halfway down the aisle Rogue, with a little laugh, pressed her bouquet into the man's arms as she reached out, fixing the tie that was still loose around his neck. With that accomplished, she took back her flowers again, but everyone saw as he wrapped her arm around his again, that Remy had threaded their fingers together. They seemed extremely hesitant to part from each other at the head of the aisle, even if it was only a few feet away. Even then their gazes had to be forcibely torn away from each other, as the music changed and the wedding march resounded as everyone stood up and their attention was riveted to the blushing bride that was being swept down the aisle on her father's arm.

Oh I know that the music's fine

Like sparkling wine, go and have your fun

Laugh and sing, but while we're apart

Don't give your heart to anyone

The congregation all sat and Logan let out a weary sigh as he slid his arm across Ororo's shoulders and used his other hand to rub against his face, "Finally. Thougt I was going to have to go all the way back to that dive in Louisiana to get that kid back."

Ororo mutely chuckled, her eyes also on the congregrated couples as the holy man's oration began. She spoke back just as quietly, "Well I could always have had Jean-Luc assign him a job up North for a while if that would have made tracking him down easier."

Logan eyed his girlfriend with a raised conspiratal brow as he replied, "Ya really have those kinds of connections, Darlin'?"

She shot him a wicked grin that always shot off warning signs in his head, "Well honesly Logan, how many Jean-Luc LeBeau's can there be in New Orleans? I'm just surprised my old friend let's Remy run-off like he does. I swear everytime I'm visiting them, he's always galivanting off somewhere. This was the first honest-to-goodness time I've met him. He wouldn't know me from Eve."

Logan let off a little chuckle as he pulled her closer and looked back up the aisle as the bride and groom began exchanging vows. "And we're really goin' to trust a guy like Gumbo with Rogue?"

"Oh hush you. You know you like him or else you would have blown their cover the first night. And I know he's been raised right."

He grunted at this with an amused smirk, and she smiled with a contented sigh as she leaned her head on his shoulder, "And besides," she waited for him to glance down at her soft eyes, "they're happy."

To prove her point she looked back up the aisle at the couples surrounded in a practically contented glow. They were just barely able to catch it, but they saw Remy shoot Rogue a stealthy wink from around the officiate's shoulder that she returned, broadly smiling. Logan gave a mock exasperated sigh, but he quickly pressed a quick kiss into Ororo's hair, signifying to her that she was right. As always.

Baby don't you know I lov-Wait! What the heck?

A sudden wistful sigh from beside the feral mutant made both Logan and Ororo's heads suddenly snap to the side.

"I just love weddings." Logan's eyes went about as wide as saucers, his mouth dropping open.

"Wade?"

"Hey Jimmy!" exclaimed the red and black, mask-clad figure. He was dabbing at the black patches where his eyes should have been with a pristine white handkerchief.

"For the love of- What the heck are you doing here?"

"Weeeelllll, the authoress said that I should make up some sort of nonsense about still hunting down Striker for what the son of a monkey's uncle did to me. I mean, seriously Jimmy did you see me? I was HOT! Like Sexiest Man Alive, Hot. I could have played Hal Jordan in that upcoming Green Lantern movie, ya know? You can't tell me that the fangirls weren't weeping about what happened to me; not to mention he literally sewed my mouth shut-"

"I'm wishin' it still was Bub," Logan growled flexing the muscles in his hands. Half-pint would kill him for ruining her wedding. Not that he could be killed... Maybe her cooking would finally succeed where so many others had failed though. "Get to the point Wade."

"Sheesh, still the drama queen I see. Well it doesn't really matter that my hotness has been lost because as soon as Gamby over there stepped onto the scene, our fangirl rates plummeted. Like Paris Hilton's last Botox injection. So at least I got some totally sweet new superpowers. And I never have to worry about losing Roxanne or Clarisse ever again!" One of the aforementioned blades slithered out of his hand. "Isn't that right, Roxy?" the madman crooned while stroking the blade. He then held it out to Logan. "Say hi to Unkie Logan, Roxy!"

Deadpool suddenly seemed to realize that Logan was none too pleased. In fact, The Wolverine had a vein pulsing a mighty alarming shade of purple right above his temple.

"Oooh, right, the point. Well the main thing the chicka was shootin' for was to have all her favorite characters show up from Origins, since you two were already part of the story, I get a random cameo appearance!" The grin he wore stretched out the fabric around his cheekbones. "But I probably wasn't supposed to tell you that... Dang I wonder if I still get a cookie for this then."

He suddenly sprang up from his seat with a two-fingered salute to all who were now watching with slack jaws.

"Well I guess that's just about all the damage I can do this run. Well not really but it's all that I'm allowed to do." He waved it off as he addressed the couple at the end of the carpeted aisle, "Hey you two have fun and all on that honeymoon of yours. And Kit-cat nice upgrade from the Icecube to the Steel-strong man!"

Kitty turned five shades redder as new horror flooded her as everyone now turned their shocked stares up front. Remy had sidled over the aisle as stealthily as he could so he could shield Rogue, recognition
dawning along with horror as he stared the wedding crasher down, "Deadpool?"

"Oh hi there! Bet you thought I forgot about you didn't you? No worries though; Gamby take care of Hot Stuff, Hot Stuff take care of Gamby, as we all know you can," he trailed off suggestively with what must have been a wink, before adding sternly, "Don't forget the condoms."

It was now Rogue's turn to go absolutely red up to her ears, but luckily the guests seemed to find watching the intruder to be far more fascinating. He had, in fact, spun around three times on his heel before facing the door, but before going out of it something caught his attention. The elderly man sitting in one of the back pews eyes widened comically as the masked mercenary started charging towards him, all thrills and giggles as he exclaimed, "Santa!"

With that outcry he proceeded to fall heavily into the man's lap, which he protested with a loud "Oof!" as all the air went out of him.

Deadpool didn't notice as he kept talking animatedly. Logan finally reached the back and drug a protesting Deadpool off of the poor man's lap.

"Hey don't you guys know who this is? Well, no he's not Santa, jeez everyone knows he's vacationing in the Bahamas with the Missus. This is the great Maesrto himself, the reason why we're all here. If it weren't for him, we would just be all figments of a lot of messed up individuals' minds! He's-"

"He's a lunatic!" the man interjected, straightening the tinted sunglasses on his nose. His white mustached mouth was tugged down into a frown as he stared apprehensively at his attacker.

Logan turned away from his struggling charge to address the assaulted man. "Listen, sir, 'fraid you're right about him, but really, he's harmless- Where'd he go?"

They all looked around in shock as they tried to find the missing eyesore, but he had simply vanished into thin air. Kitty then came running down the aisle to kneel besides the sitting man.

"Oh Grandpa Stanley, are you alright?" she worriedly asked as she fretted about just what she could do to help the man. He simply shot her a kind smile as he patted her hand reassuringly.

"There, there now Kitten, I'm alright. Thanks to this young man here."

Logan just grunted a reply, "Sorry 'bout that, Mr. Pryde."

"Oh Pryde's not my name, son. But you can just call me Stan." He then turned back to his anxious granddaughter and clasped her hand. "Now dear, though all this excitement is entertaining, how about we get you married to that fine gentleman over there hmm?"

She smiled up at him and quickly stood, smoothing out all the wrinkles as she made her way down the aisle for the second time that day. Everyone quickly got back into their positions, and the ceremony was so beautiful, they almost completely forgot the chaos that accompanied it.

Almost.

There was still the wedding video tape that had miraculously caught every last second of the entire day, which only served to amuse everyone but a certain Mrs. Katherine Pryde-Rasputin for many years to come.

But on to the fun part…

The reception at Xavier's was definitely one for the history books. There was a great deal of laughter, and even more showing off with a few attractive mutant powers going on to dazzle the visiting 'normal' guests. It soon became a show of one-up-manship between a moderately behaving St. John Allerdyce and some of the fresher recruits who stood in a kind of awe of the man who had once walked out on the X-Men to join up with the legendary Magneto. But then again, there was alcohol involved so that might have led to things getting a tad out of hand, as Johnny put it, when Ororo's prized hydrangeas were almost incinerated. It went without saying that a strict warning was issued and Wanda, who had a temper even more legendary than that of her father's, stuck close to her apparent new boyfriend.

Kitty and Pete looked surprisingly happy to all involved with the little incident. It might have had something to do with the fact that upon returning to the mansion they found that the left behind residents reported that a severly beaten Bobby had rushed into the mansion, threw all of his things together before snagging one of the cars (unfortunately for him, one of Logan's favorites) and tore out of there like the devil was hot on his heels. At first Logan seethed at this and moved to track the Ice-brat down and drag him back, but then he saw the relieved and hopeful expressions on Kitty and Piotr's faces, and begrudingly agreed that it could be his form of a wedding present just to let things be.

So now all the couples and miscellaneous others were skirting around overflowing refreshment tables and the dance floors, smiling and laughing. Well almost everyone. There was one freshly reunited couple that was teetering on the edge of ackwardness as they walked along the shoreline of the lake, just slightly removed from the rest of the crowd. And even though their hands were intertwined, the tension of thoughts left unsaid was almost tangible as it hung above their heads. And both were painfully aware of it.

Finally raking his hand through his messy brown hair, Remy gave off a half laugh, half exasperated sigh as he glanced at her from the corner of his eye, a smirk tugging at the corners of lips, "We've really gotta stop doin' dis."

Her smile ghosted across her features as she gave off a soft laugh, squeezing his hand tighter as she shook her head. There was still a moment's pause as they thought about what they wanted to say, and then in proper clishe fashion they both started at the same time.

"Listen Rogue,-"

"Remy,-"

"I'm not going back to New Orleans... Wait, you aren't?" They both stood stunned for a moment as they took in each other's expressions and Rogue spoke first this time.

"Remy, ya can't. What about your family, Belle-"

He cut her off as he drew her closer, raising her chin and running his fingers down her jawline as he gazed tenderly down at her, "Did y' really think I was gonna leave y' after all dis, ma Cherie? I'd already decided a while ago I wasn't going to leave y'r side if I had a chance of actually havin' somethin' wit' y', Rogue."

"Really?" She felt kind of breathless watching him smile down at her before he pressed a small and tender kiss on her lips. It still managed to make her head spin.

"Really. Since de night of the bachelor party. 'Realized the moment I kissed y' in the bar that I was in love wit' y' girl."

She felt the smile spreading across her face as she reached up to peck his lips again, "Me too."

His smile shifted into a knowing smirk as he grabbed one of her hands and started playing with her fingers, "As for Belle... I have a feelin' dat her new husband wouldn't really appreciate her practicin' bigamy, so..."

His smirk broadened as she blinked with shock, cutting him off, "Wait, wait, wait. Husband? When did that happen?"

"Same night," his smirk quickly disappeared as she slapped his chest, a scowl falling over her features with that spark of anger that he loved entering her eyes, "And when were you going to tell me?"

"I didn't know dat she had eloped until last night, I swear. I just know she called me the night of to tell me that she was 'releasing me'. But I had been plannin' on tellin' you last night, along wit' de whole Bobby deal..." He pulled her chin up again to meet his gaze from where she had lowered it, "Desole ma Chere, for not tellin' y' sooner. I hadn't known long myself, but I wanted to tell you so you wouldn't have gotten so hurt. An' then, I just made things worse wit' some of the things I said... desole, Rogue. I shouldn't have said-"

She shook her head, winding her arms around his neck and interrupting him again, "No Remy, ya were right. And don't argue," she shot him a small glare when he looked like he was going to interrupt her, "Logan said almost exactly the same thing, and you are both right. I do run, alot. But I'm willing to try staying for a while, if ya'll have me. I said some pretty bad things too, and you just have to know, I don't regret one second of our time together-"

This time he did manage to cut her off, but this time kissing her deeply, swaying all her worries away as she quickly responded eagerly. When he pulled away he brushed their noses together, her eyes fluttering open to stare into his deeply, "Y' already have me Chere."

She smiled brightly as she leaned into his arms contentedly sighing as she tucked her head under his chin. She felt a thrill run through her as she smiled into his chest. He was hers.

"Rogue?" he asked after a minute, and she answered by humming and looking up at his questioning gaze, "Why aren't y' goin' back to New Orleans?"

She bit her lip as she looked up at him thoughtfully, "I told Ororo and Logan that I wanted to come back home." She watched were her breath caught in her throat as he processed this information.

"And do you?"

"Yes," she said, half-dreading his reaction as she joked, "And apparently, I'm the only one who knows how to organize a library 'round here."

He hummed thoughtfully for a moment, and suddenly her head shot up and she stared at him with bright, mischievous eyes, "Y'know," she drawled, a smile barely repressed, "We do need someone to upgrade our security around here."

He caught on, his eyes twinkling in merriment as realization hit him. He pretended to muse this, as he took one of the white curls slipping out of place and twirled it around his fingers, "Oh really?"

She nodded her head sagely as she went on, "Oh yes, you wouldn't believe it. We keep getting invaded by all these top-secret government raids. It's really getting annoying by now."

His smirk was desperately being forced down as he eyed her with a business like air, "I can only imagine."

She shot him a grin as she looped one of her arms around his back, turning them back towards the mansion, "Ya wouldn't happen to know anyone who could help us out with that, would ya Sugar?"

He pulled her closer for a minute as they began walking, running a kiss from her chin until his lips rested right at her ear, his hot breath sending chills down her spine as he replied, "I might, but he's got a pretty hefty fee."

How she managed to keep her voice from wavering, she didn't know, "Oh really? And what might that be?"

He spun her back around, to trail his fingers along her sides until they came to firmly rest at her waist, and he drank in her uncontainable sigh as her lids slipped shut. He leaned in closer, whispering against her lips, "You".

Then he proceeded to press a searing kiss to her waiting lips, before drawing away and finishing the statement, "...in that leather uniform of yours."

Her eyes flashed open then as he laughed and skitted out of her reach as she attempted to slap at him. He soon caught the hand trying to snag him, and brought it to his lips, watching delightedly as she just rolled her eyes.

He soon pulled her back to his side and they continued on their way up to the masses littering the lawn. But before they were quite on the fringe of the crowd, he drew her back for a moment and she caught his furrowed brow. "What is it Rems?"

His features looked strained as he held her hand and he went on cautiously, "Desole Chere, but before we go any further, there's somethin' I need to tell y' because I don't want y' thinkin' I'm usin' it to influence y'. Y' see, I have a secondary mutation-"

"Are you talking about the empathy-thing, Swamp Rat?" His expression fell into one of gaping shock to her amusement as he stared at her glittering eyes and he tried to form a sentence, "How did- when did you...?"

She laughed as she shook her head taking his hand and holding it to her cheek, "Since the Danger Room. Figured ya had to be the reason why my emotions went from being spiked to being controllable."

"Spiked?" Confusion still marred his features as it was her turn to look a little bit nervous.

"Yeah Sug, I should have told you. When I absorb someone, I don't get the other person's emotions, mine are just... heightened." She said as she searched for the right word.

"So wait, de night on de jet...?" He watched her face go beat red as she hummed a litte affirmation and his head sunk down onto her shoulder with a groan, "Merde."

She laughed gently as she wrapped her arms back around his neck and she kissed his cheek closest to her. "I really do appreciate that we didn't Remy. I'd like to be me if anything like that happens."

He sighed as he lifted his head off her shoulder and kissed her lips before he went on, "Bon. I'd like it to be y' too."

She laughed again as she hit his shoulder, before his smirk got wicked and he waggled his eyebrows mischievously, "Wait. If?"

A new blush fanned her cheeks as she rolled her eyes and began dragging him towards the party, "C'mon ya dirty Swamp Rat, let's tell Ororo and Logan you're staying."

He chuckled, allowing himself to be led, as he pressed further, "Does dis mean his River Rat's gonna clean him up?" He laughed as she got even redder, thoroughly enjoying her reactions. "What do y' think Stormy will say when we say I wanna join de X-Men?"

"That if you keep callin' her 'Stormy' the first thing she's gonna do is put ya on probation from the team." She said matter of factly as they began weaving through the crowds, she went on with a smirk thrown over her shoulder, "Or just possibly from the uniforms you seem so entranced with."

He gasped with mock horror, covering his wounded heart as she laughed and pulled them along.

The conversation went down well enough, with a few members congratulating them and welcoming them to the team. But soon enough the couple decided to slip by all the well-wishers and Remy pulled her out onto the dance floor, the music flowing around them as they spun and swayed like the day before.

As he spun her around and she came face to face with him, she raised a skeptical brow as she studied his reaction, "I might be hard to put up with." It came out a bit as a warning.

He just pulled her to him before swinging her back out nonchalantly, "So am I."

Baby, don't you know I love you so?

Can't you feel it when we touch?

"And who knows if I'll ever get control of my powers."

He drew her closer to him than before and kissed her gently before moving back into the dance before replying assuredly, "Y' will."

I will never, never let you go

I love you, oh, so much

"You just like to contradict people, don't ya Swamp Rat?" She asked him amused, with mock frustration coloring her tone.

"Oui," he said smugly as he dipped her back down, "So do I pass?"

"Hmmm," she looked thoughtful, the white shispy strands of her hair blowing across her face. She just smiled and leaned up to capture his lips again for an instant.

"Guess you'll have to do, "she said as they broke apart, but her eyes were sparkling.

The sudden ringing of Rogue's phone stopped them in mid-step. She went over to the table where her clutch bag lay and her brow furrowed as she studied the screen.

"What is it Chere?" He strode over after noting her concern.

"I don't recognize this number."

He took a look over her shoulder only to recognize it as a Louisiana number. As he kept staring it down in mild confusion, the number finally registered and he took the phone out of her hands and answered it.

"Tante?"

"Remy-chile, are you staying with that Rogue-fille in New York or not?"

"Yeah but Tante-" he was cut off as he heard her call off into the background.

"Pay-up Jean-Luc, he's stayin'."

"Wait. You and Pere made a bet on whether I'd stay here or not?"

"An' your fou Pere didn't have sense enough to know better than bet against moi." she sounded proud.

"'ow was I to know the boy'd lost his head?" He heard his father mutter in the background amidst a caephony of laughter. They were takin' this better than he thought.

"Oh hush you, you're jus' as pleased as everyone else that he's not here sulkin' about getting married. I saw that bottle of scotch you snuck out to Marius to celebrate 'not becoming in-laws'." Mattie scolded.

Remy just stood there flabbergasted as Rogue smirked, getting right beside him so she could hear the conversation going on.

"Wait. Pere didn't want me to get married? Why then, did I have to suffer ever-so-many months of torture at the hands of my ex-fiance, si vous-plait?"

"Chile, do you really think we wanted you unhappy? Why do you think your Tante always encourage Stephen into coming with Belle? De garcon was so jealous of you, he took the first chance he had of proposing to Belle as soon as you left."

He blinked owlishly then which elicited a low chuckle from Rogue.

"Now Rogue-honey, you there Chere?"

"Yes mam," It was Rogue's turn to blink away her surprise at Remy. He smirked in return.

"Now Chere, you take care of that coquin. It may seem like he's more trouble than he's worth, he probably is, mais he's crazy 'bout y' fille. He's a good boy, when 'e wants to be." Rogue laughed again.

"An' Remy, you take care of dis fille, she's a special one."

"Don't I know it?" he asked as he drew her closer with his free arm sliding around her waist as she blushed again.

"You two better start workin' on her control too, if ya'll gonna join de X-Men."

"Tante, how do you know 'bout de X-Men? How'd you even know Rogue's number?" Remy asked perplexed.

"Same way I'd known you'd be stayin' in New York, chile. Ya'll take care and don't be strangers, I expect to meet dis fille soon Remy LeBeau. That's an order." And with those last mysterious words leaving them confused the other line went dead.

After a moment's pause, Remy turned away from the phone to slip his other arm around her waist. "Well Chere, I'd say it's official. We made de better choice," he said matter-of-factly.

"What choice?" she asked confused as she laid the phone back down.

He drew her back onto the dance floor to spin her around again, "To stay with your family. I still say mine's crazier than yours." She just laughed at him.

Ooh, you make the promise that you save the last dance for me

Save the last dance, the very last dance for me

AN: Aww, wasn't that sweet? I'm gonna cry.

Oh please, chica. I've seen you be sappy and this isn't it.

Oh hush Wade. I'm still mad at you for the whole tirade where you blew my cover. And don't pout at me I'm not giving you the cookie. So guys, did the beginning fool you? I bet movie watchers are thinking I was going nuts or something. The idea just popped into my head and I had to write it down. At first it was just going to be a possible alternate ending, but I liked how the movie ended better.

Yeah, yeah. You got any chimichangas?

No Wade.

What? Why not? I thought you said it was your birthday.

It is.

Then where is the party food?

Where you can't find it. I don't trust you around the sugar. Now back to the story, please? Thank you. I noticed in your reviews that a lot of you were hating on Kitty, and believe me I'm far from being a supporter of cheating, but I thought about how Kitty acted throughout chapter 11 and decided that I needed to show you guys that she was really remorseful for her actions like she was in the dance studio scene. And a few of you may disagree with Rogue's choice to forgive her and Booby, but-

You said Booby.

I'm aware of that, let me finish, yes? Okay but guys, if you don't learn to forgive the people who hurt you the pain is just going to remain. By not forgiving and letting go, that moment has power of you and can influence the way you decide to live your lives a long time after the initial trauma. I'm not saying you have to be friends with them, like how Rogue firmly distances herself from Bobby. Sometimes that's the only thing you can do for a person who hurts you, the only way you can reach them by removing yourself from their lives. So basically, if someone's hurting you, you shouldn't let them do it. Like Kitty realized, a painful relationship is not healthy and you're only going to cause more harm remaining in it. But forgiving and letting go means they can't hold it over you. That their influence isn't going to keep you from happiness.

... Are you always this philosophical?

Normally no, but I have issues with this. Anyway, Rogue and Remy are back together and... you know what? I'm not cutting it off like that. Keep reading.

Do I get my cookie now?

Hush.

Silence reigned amongst the congregated room as the group stared at the couple sitting on the couch before Kitty finally stuttered out, "What?"

This apparently pushed the rest of them into hysteria, especially Jubilee who threw her head back and began laughing heartily while Logan shook his head in amusement and various forms of confusion and shock spread across the rest of the room.

"You mean to tell us that you two had never met before the day you came here?" Wanda raised a skeptical eyebrow turning to inspect one face then the other as Rogue and Remy sat nonchalantly on the couch as the interrogation began.

"Yep," Rogue said from her place leaning against Remy, his arm wrapped around her shoulders as she shrugged after a moment, "Or at least no other meetings that I remember."

"Oh, I would have remembered," Remy reassured her as he leaned in to nuzzle the hollow just below her ear. The others watched this with dawning astonishment as they began putting things together.

"But you are together for real now?" Pete asked, Kitty poised on the armrest of the chair he was sitting in.

"Oh, yeah, of course."

"Oui, most definitely."

"And you guys just got into this whole relationship, the week before my wedding?" Kitty asked, disbelief marring her features as she shook her head. Rogue and Remy just smiled, Rogue leaning up to capture his lips briefly until Jubilee's hysterics finally died down.

"Oh that is too great," she wiped away at a bit of moisture that had managed to slip down her cheeks as a few last dying chuckles escaped out.

"What's great about Rogue paying, how much money was it, for a date to come fool us, actually lie to us?" Wanda eyes narrowed, and she turned her glare turned towards the striped woman, who had the decency to look sheepish.

Remy looked completely unrepentant, raising his free arm in a helpless gesture as he protested, "Hey I returned the money."

Wanda still looked unconvinced as Ororo looked at them, or more Rogue, as she went on compassionately, "Rogue, you didn't have to spend all that money to convince us that you were happy. We just worry about you but that doesn't mean you have to meet our expectations. You're an adult, and we can accept your life decisions as long as you really are happy."

"I know that now," Rogue smiled up at the older woman, but she turned back towards Remy with a smirk as she laced their fingers together, "But look at what it got me."

"Aww, that's so sweet!" Kitty gushed, now leaning her head on top of Piotr's as he chuckled softly, wrapping an arm around her waist.

"And it's great," Jubilee shook her head as she snickered again.

Logan finally made his first comment, raising a brow as he stared a little concerned at the Asian girl. He wasn't the only one. "What's so funny, Sparky?"

Jubilee briefly wrinkled her nose at the nickname, before her mischievous smile returned as she replied cheekily, "It's like a reverse 'Pretty Woman'."

Remy and Rogue both burst out laughing at that, Rogue going so far as needing to lean forward a bit and grasping her sides. The rest of the room now stared at them with a bit wariness, until Rogue was finally able to catch her breath again, shaking a reprimanding finger at a still recovering Remy.

"Don't you say a word," Rogue ordered her eyes narrowed. Remy simply snickered, catching the hand and planting a kiss on it, before waggling his eyebrows playfully, mischief dancing in his eyes as he did say something, "Like the fact that Jubilee just called me a hooker?"

This made the whole room laugh, and Remy mused further, enjoying the tension and slight uneasiness that the more respectable members of the crowd were feeling, "Hmm, would explain my experience, non?"

This made Rogue blush red to her roots as she slapped his shoulder. "Remy…" she muttered, in a low growl.

He smiled unabashedly at her as he reached out to twirl one of her white stripes around his finger, "Ah, don't worry ma Chere, I don't think y' can pull off Richard Gere."

She rolled her eyes but leaned into his touch when he moved to caress her cheek, but suddenly shot up with amusement in her eyes, "Oh!"

Remy shot her his own amused expression as he raised his brows, "Care to share with the class, Cherie?"

Her smirk turned wicked, "I just thought of what I'm gonna do with the money. Or at least some of it."

"Pay for my and Pete's honeymoon?" Kitty asked, batting her eyes lashes hopefully. Rogue shot her an exasperated look before replying, "Uh, no."

"Shopping spree with me?" Jubilee looked positively thrilled with that idea before she waved the idea off, "Wait what am I talking about, if I'm taking anyone shopping from now on, it's gonna be your boyfriend and his little black card."

There were more chuckles that spread around the circle here, especially at Remy's expense as he looked a little discomforted with this idea. Rogue rolled her eyes again before she said a firm 'No' in Jubilee's direction before turning back to Remy.

"I'm totally buying Emil a pimp hat."

This made Remy throw his head back in deep laughter once more as Rogue smiled on smugly. After he was able to breathe again he brushed the tears from his eyes as he nodded at her, "Mon Dieu, that's perfect."

"Remy's cousin Emil is the one who set us up. I might have to get it custom made with tequila bottles and fairies on it." At his, well nearly everyone's, confused expression she asked, "Didn't he tell you?"

"Obviously I was not fully informed," he mused as the others watched them back and forth like a tennis match. Jubilee had to interrupt.

"Wait, wait, wait. What's this about a cousin I hear? Is there a single Cajun out there or not?"

Before the couple on the couch could reply, Wanda rolled her eyes with a muttered, "Oh please."

"Hey Chica-I-just-hooked-up-with-the-ex-bad-boy, you cannot talk. I'm the only single chick in this room at the moment and it shows."

"That's not completely true, Tabby's still single," Kitty put in, but at that moment a loud ruckus caught their attention on down the hall. The next moment Tabby, who was wrapped completely around one Sam Gunthrie, looked like they were completely oblivious to the world as they drunkenly clung to each other, looking slightly like they were eating each other's faces as they stumbled through the halls.

Ororo was quick to snap to attention, the other's following suit as the weather witch tried to reprimand the couple and get them out of public eye as quickly and quietly as possible, "Tabitha! Sam! There are children here!"

The couple remained on the couch watching the turn of events a little amused as Logan was the last one to depart from the room, shoot them an eye roll before following after the mass.

Remy just turned to Rogue with a little grin in place as he pulled her closer. She sighed as she leaned into him, saying a little exasperatedly, "Well, that went as well as could be expected."

He chuckled as he wrapped his arms around her, kissing the top of her head as he rubbed up and down her arms, "Don't worry 'bout it, Chere. Jus' think what their reactions are gonna be when we tell them what me and my family do for a living."

AN: Ah, much better. They never reveal if Kat told her family about the situation but I thought it would be cute. But this isn't the end. We still have the epilogue that I'll be sure to get out to you guys soon. Because we're not done with Bobby yet.

Wait, what was with all that forgiveness crap then?

I said the characters were supposed to forgive Bobby. Doesn't mean I'm through with him.

... Y'know, you could start to grow on me.

Aww, that's sweet. Now head back to Blue so she'll relinquish my shirtless Remy clone. I hope she sends him with cupcakes for my birthday.

What do I look like, her keeper?

Oh well. Review guys, it's been a blast!

Oooh! I forgot! Did anyone catch our guest -and no, not Wade, the other one? Wade, and introducion if you will.

Sure thing. Drumroll please... it was none other that the Maestro of Marvel himself, Stan "The Man Lee! And let me tell you, he's great at parties.

You were at a party with Stan Lee and you didn't tell me?

I take it that you're upset?

Grr. Anyway I love Stan Lee he's amazing. And since he traditionally makes an appearance in most Marvel movies I thought I'd introduce him to fanfiction. I've never seen him in a fic anyway. *shrugs.* Oh and guys, I have the best boss in the entire universe. When I got to work I found a birthday banner strung across my office and guess what? It's pirate themed! *squeals!*

I'm taking it that an obsessive fan-chicky likes pirates.

Almost as much as I adore crazy people and thieves.

Aww, you flatterer you!

Guess that's it officially now guys, I'll see ya in the epilogue! -Peace, Blackberry ;)

AND WADE! But not the "peace" part that could get messy.