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Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
 
 
 

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Written by Keri Wilson
Last updated: 01/02/2007 02:01:11 AM

Chapter 3

Remy opened his eyes, 4:15 AM the clock read. Too early to get up, he thought. Tara lay curled up next to him asleep with a smile on her face. She so beautiful...

Remy's mind drifted back to the dream that had wakened him. It hadn't been a nightmare, but it hadn't been exactly pleasant either. He had a lot of dreams like that in the past few years, replacing the dominant nightmares of before...Before Tara came into his life.

This particular dream he had a lot lately. He saw who he believed may have been his parents. He had dreamed of these two people off and on for as long as he could remember. The woman looked beautiful and had almost the same color hair as he did, just a little more red in it. The man had black hair. What made him think it was his father was that the man had exactly the same shape eyes he did.

Of course his mind could have made these two people up, but somehow he knew he hadn't. The version of the dream he had just had made him wonder if something bad had happened to them. Also Tante Mattie was in this dream. She was talking with the couple and they were all happy and laughing. Remy though, had a feeling of forebording, something had happened to them, and now he knew who to ask about them.

He had started having these weird deja vu feelings too when he was around the kids. Renee was almost three now, and Richard was 17 months old. It happened again later that day. He caught Renee on top of the kitchen counter, sneaking cookies out the cookie jar.

"Ti-espiele." He said laughing, and lifted her off the counter.

He got the deja vu feeling then. He remembered being called that as a child, but by who? Tante Mattie had never called him that. His foster father or brother had never called him that. No one had called him a "little scamp". Where had that come from?

He pushed it to the back of his mind for now. Continuing in the light tone, he gently scolded his daughter as he carried her back to the nursery, where he had last checked on her playing with her toys, not five minutes ago. "Your mama's gonna be mad at you f' messing `round wit' de cookies. Maybe no cookie after supper, hahn?"

At this Renee's eyes welled up with tears, "Wan' cookie! Me not a bad girl."

"Non. Jus' naughty." He grinned.

Renee pouted.

Tara was just putting Richard back in his crib for a nap when Remy came in with Renee. Tara saw the pout on Renee's face. And couldn't help letting a little smile touch her face. "What'd she get into now?" Tara asked Remy.

"De cookie jar." Remy replied.

"Wan' cookie." Renee insisted.

"Ah think yah got one, or more." Tara gently scolded her daughter. "Now it's time for yoah nap too." She said as Remy put their daughter into her crib.

"Don' wan' no nap."

Remy handed his daughter her favorite toy, a toy stuffed zebra. Renee hugged it, then started playing with it and talking to it. Tara and Remy quietly left the room.

"Remy ah don't think we're gonna get her tah take naps for much longer."

"Non. She's a lively one, like me, maybe."

"Ah wasn't exactly quiet as a little kid either."

"She have a double dose den?" Remy grinned.

"Probably." Tara grinned back at him.

"Got t' clean de mess Renee make in de kitchen."

"Ah better clear off some o' the snow from the roof o' the barn and the house."

"Had a regular blizzard last night, neh?"

Tara frowned, she hated winter, didn't care much for snow either.

Remy smiled then kissed her. "De kids like it, chere."

"Yeah." She smiled. They were cute playing in the snow. Tara pulled on her coat, "See yah later shugah. Ah'll check on the horses too, while ah'm at it."

After he got the kitchen cleaned, Remy dialed Tante Mattie's telephone number.After catching her up with the latest on Renee and Richard, Remy came to the point of the call.

"Speaking of little ones, I want t' know somet'ing."

"What do you want to know Remy?"

"Do y' know what happened t' my parents?"

There was a long pause on the other end, then Tante Mattie said, "Remy, I made a promise to Jean-Luc a long time ago. I can't tell you, but I will tell Marguerite it's time for her to visit you."

"Okay." Remy knew that this was a way that she could let him know, but not violate her promise to Remy's foster father. He could wait a little longer to find out. He had lived this long without knowing. Remy wondered, though, just how many people he grew up around knew what had happened and hadn't told him. His foster father, apparently, Tante Mattie and Marguerite for starters. What had happened?

Marguerite called a short time later. "Y' wan' me t' come up dere? I t'ink it be better if I tell you face t' face, neh?"

"Oui." Remy knew Tara would be curious to meet this woman that Remy had mentioned occassionally through the years. She had never met Marguerite on their various trips to New Orleans. Marguerite had very little interaction outside of her community, unlike Tante Mattie. Remy debated how much to tell Tara about why Marguerite was coming up. Not because he didn't trust Tara, but because he didn't want her needlessly anxious. He also would wait until Jubilee was gone a mission, he didn't trust hernot to sneak around and try to find out anything she could. She'd probably tell an exaggerated version of whatever Marguerite had to tell him to Tara. Now that Jubilee was sort of an occassional member of the x-teams that was possible. Jubilee's "youthful indiscretion" had been forgiven, to a degree.

Tara watched the small, slender African-American woman greet Remy with a warm hug. She had her hair tightly coiled on her head in spiral shapes.

"You are Tara, are you not?" Marguerite asked.

"Ah am. Ah'm glad tah finally meet yah."

"Jus' what tales has Remy been telling about me?"

"All sorts o' complimentary stuff. Yah taught him how tah fight, how tah treat woman like ladies..."

Marguerite laughes. "Remy LeBeau, y' make me sound like a combination dojo master and Miss Manners!"

"Dat what y' were t' me, neh?" Remy grinned.

Marguerite had been his first teacher, she was quite a good fighter too, her petite form was an advantage that she could use well. She had a higher level of agility than he did, and this served her well too. But he had learned fighting styles from many people over the years, including even Belladonna, the best fighter the assassins had. Marguerite had taught himother things too. Not just courting the ladies, but how to please them in the bedroom. She had been the one that had intiated Remy to the arts of love when he was 12 and she was about 22. He hadn't told Tara about the last because he knew she wouldn't understand that it hadn't been an relationship, she was just training him in that too.

After Marguerite had met everyone and been served a full course meal Remyhad prepared, they talked while Remy gave her a tour of the farm.

"Are y' sure you're ready t' hear dis?"

"Oui. No matter how bad. I want t' know. I been having dreams."

"What happen in de dreams?"

"Dese two people talking and laughing, dey look kind of like me. But Iknow somet'ing bad happen t' dem."

"Oui. Somet'ing bad happen. Very bad. It's a cliche, but Remy, I t'ink y' should be sitting down t' hear dis."

Remy cleared off the snow on a fallen tree at the edge of the woods. They sat down on it.

"Where should I start Remy... I'm not too good at telling secrets."

"At de beginning." Remy said with a grim look on his face.

Marguerite sighed, after a long pause she began. "Your foster father isyour real uncle, or actually half uncle. Your mother Alouette had a different mother dan Jean-Luc did. She was de only daughter from Jean-Marc's second marriage.

Alouette fell in love wit' a minor assassinsguild member, only very distantly related to de Bodreaux. De boy loved Alouette as much as she loved him. His name was Jack Dupree. Y' know de old guild law dat forbade marriage between t'ieves and assassins, neh?"

"Oui." Marius and Jean-Luc had decided to violate that law when theyproposed a peace between the guilds by arranging a marriage between Belladonna and Remy. So Remy was quite familar with the law, and that ithad been set up by Candra to keep "her" two guilds as rivals, just for her entertainment.

"Mattie and I knew about Jack and Alouette, being friends of dem, me t'rough hanging around my cousin Mattie's house. I was only nine years old around den. Mattie was still being trained by our greatgrandmere at dat time. She was jus' a young woman. Mattie is de only one of my greatgrandmere's decendants dat got de healing powers in full. I only haveit a little. Mattie and your mere were jus' about de same age and her closest friend dat I know of. Alouette and Jack run off after de secretly get married. Mattie, I and de preacher de only ones at de wedding. Dey disappeared for a while after dat. Mattie wondered if Candra have somet'ing to do wit' it. Den Alouette show up several months later,pregnant. She snuck into de city to Mattie's house. She tell Mattie dat she and Jack be living out in de bayous and guided her to de house. She swear Mattie to secrecy, not tell anyone, not even me or greatgrandmere where dey are. She ask Mattie to help her deliever de baby when it come.

Mattie did what Alouette asked her. When it around time for de baby t' come she slip out t' de bayous and stay until de baby was born. Dat was you."

"Oui. But what happen t' dem."

"Patience Remy, you need t' know de whole story before y' hear de end. So after dat Mattie sneak back in de bayous every so often. Seeing datdey were well. Almost three and a half years go by dat way. One day she go out t' de house, it be all quiet, too quiet. She not say anyt'ing, but go real quiet up to de door...." Margaurete paused here, what she was about to say, even though she had only heard it later from Mattie was as clear and terrible as if she had seen it herself, to tell Remy...

"Tell me, chere." Remy spat out.

"De sight was de most horrible t'ing she ever saw. Alouette and Jack had been viciously murdered by de assassins' guild. What was even worse was Alouette was pregnant again. De baby cut out of her and killed too. It was a little girl..." Marguerete stopped, tears streaming down her face.

"De assassins kill dem...How dey find out where my family was?" Remy said in shock.

"We don' know Remy. Someone else found out where dey were. Luck was wit' you already when dey struck. Y' had gone out crayfishing with your little net. Apparently dey didn't know about you, because we know you weren't searched for. Mattie was desperate t' find you t'ough before youcame back home, and saw..."

"I had already, didn't I."

"Oui." Marguerite looked straight at him. "Mattie found you in a little bit, wandering lost in the bayous, crying. You had blood all over your front, but weren't physically hurt. She knew you had come back sometime before she got there. She knew you must have been crayfishing when it happened because you still had the net wit' you. When you saw her you came running to her and clung onto her like a baby bear. She washed you off in de bayou and brought y' back t' New Orleans wit' her. Y' must have shut everyt'ing out you were so shocked. All y' remember when y' get back t' New Orleans was dat your first name is Remy.

You stay wit' Mattie for a while. Mattie and I took care of you de best we could, but y' were a wild little boy. Y' spent most of your time wit' de street children, pickpocketing and other kinds of stealing. Den Jean-Luc got a look at you de day y' tried to pickpocket him. He come t' Mattie and ask her if y' were Alouette's child. He seemed real proud of you and was smiling. Mattie said you were, and told him what had happened to your parents."

"So dat when he decide t' make me his foster son?"

"Oui. He was determined. So she let him. Dat's when he make Mattie promise not to tell no one, not even you. He didn't know dat I knew and Mattie didn't tell him. So I didn't have any obligation not t' tell when y' ask me."

Remy looked thoughtful. "He must have decided that t' protect me when I was little, den it maybe give him de idea of how t' stop de fighting between de guilds when I'm older. Better dat I don' know either, maybe he t'ink I try t' kill all de assassins dat killed my parents in a blood feud. Maybe he t'ink time t' stop de killing."

Remy felt so many conflicting emotions about what he had just found out, he decided to deal with it later, not forget it this time, he needed to sort things out before he decided what to do. Whatever it was he would do it wouldn't involve either guild. That was the past and guild laws no matter how wrong or evil they seemed to him. Remy had a feeling he would have to go to the source of those laws to discover the last piece of the puzzle- Candra.

Remy felt guilty telling Tara a half truth, but it wasn't something that he thought was that big a deal, he just wanted information, not to destroy the place or get revenge. He told Tara that he was taking Marguerite back to the airport in New York City, they'd do a few things and he would be back by tonight. What he hadn't said was that the "things" involved going to New Orleans, and breaking into the assassins' guild records to find out any information they had on the "hit".

He was in and out without anyone knowing he was there. He had one more place to visit before he went home, his foster father's home.

"Candra ordered it?" Jean-Luc LeBeau's eyes narrowed to slits. Alouette had been his favorite sibling, and perhaps knowing that Remy was her son, had made him care for Remy more than he had even his own son Henri.

"Oui. I'm going t' find out why. Dere's more t' dis than `violating' guild law."

"Candra can be dangerous."

"Oui. Dat's why I'm not telling Tara I'm confronting Candra."

"Oui. Your wife is very protective of you, and a bit impulsive. De children also need t' have at least one of dere parents alive, just in case."

"I'm leaving it up t' you. If I don't come back you can tell her what happened to me or not."

Jean-Luc nodded. "Y' didn't tell her dat y' were coming here neither, neh?"

"Non."

Remy had taken some of the guild ways to heart, Jean-Luc thought. He protects his family de guild way. Jean-Luc approved.

Remy stopped by the X-mansion on his way home.

"Professor, do y' have a quick job dat needs t' be done?"

"I'm sure I do. Any reason why?"

"Jus' need t' get out f' a bit."

"I do need some information gathered on a new mutant group in Germany. I need to know what their aims are. I know you are an expert on culvert operations, so perhaps a day or two observation would give me all I need to know for now."

"Oui." Remy didn't let any emotions show on his face, but inside he almost leaped for joy. Germany was next door to France. Candra was in Paris most of the time. He couldn't have got a much better cover job.

The mutant group was just some teenage mutant kids that had apparently discovered each other and were hanging out together in a sort of gang.Remy didn't really see that they had much of an agenda, except what all street kids had, stay alive. It'd probably be a good idea for de professor t' get dem in touch wit' one of his underground groups. Dey could take dese kids in and help dem out, maybe send dem t' de Massachusetts Academy before someone bad like Candra or Sinister discovered dem. Wouldn't want dem t' even fall into Magneto's hands, least bad of de bad guys, but still not good. Remy thought.

Now he had to confront Candra. And he knew how to get the information and get out unharmed. Candra was greedy, she had a lot of nice things he could snatch and make her bargain to get back. He had to think a while before he came up with something she would want back bad enough that he could get almost any information out of her. He remembered this little minature portrait of a young blonde man in 17th century dress, Candra was very possessive of it.

He found out after he had been working for Candra for a while that it was of her dead brother. Externals were as much genetic flukes as mutants, actually moreso. To be virtual immortal because of some mutation. You would long outlive all of your family, unless one of them was an External too. he hadn't heard of that happening though.

He stole the minature then and left her a note. He was a little surprised that Candra showed up herself to get it back and not sent a lackey. This would make it much easier! Remy wasn't afraid of Candra alone, but she had some big guns working for her who were mighty dangerous. She value dis t'ing so much dat she not trust any her people t' try t' get it back. Remy thought. He knew she had her goons ready nearby. If she saw a chance she would take it he was sure, as soon as she had her toy back in her possession.

"Remy, how nice to see you." Candra said with mixture of lust and hate.

"Wanting to know somet'ing."

"Just one thing, my, my you've become much more narrowminded. Must be your wife and children that did it to you." Candra mocked.

Remy wasn't surprised she had found out he was married now and had kids. Wouldn't have been that hard to find out. "Wanting t' know somet'ing about my family."

"Oh, that. Remy, that information is practually worthless. I may have even told you that if you had just asked me..." Candra smirked, but Remy could tell she was anxious to get her little painting back.

"So tell me why you order my parents killing, and you get your de painting of your brother back."

"Oh, so the guild law didn't give you your reason? Good, Remy you always were my smartest operative. Hmm, where should I start?" Candra said coyly.

"When de come t' you."

"You found out about that? My, you are still sharp. Well they violated guild law and by assassin guild law they could be killed for that. Jack, your father, I enjoyed his company a few times, but he was nowhere near the skill you have in the bedroom... Well I had them work for me a while, Alouette was a fair theif, but no where near your skills. She was soon pregnant by Jack besides. I find pregnant woman repulsive so I sent them back to Louisiana. I gave them the condition that they could break the guild laws if their child- you, were turned over to me once it was no longer a infant. And they could have no more children. I had other things I was doing so I let them get by with not sending you for over a year after they should. Then I found out they had violated my other condition and Alouette was carrying another child. I couldn't tolerate blatent violations of my rules, so they were given the punishment they deserved by guild law. That's all there was to it."

Remy tossed the minature back to Candra in disgust. Then as her lackies appeared from their hiding places Remy charged up cards and a handful of throwing spikes. It didn't take long to take out the crew Candra had brought with her this time, but Candra was already long gone by then. Remy didn't bother trying to go after her. Undoubtably her big guns were at her place. He couldn't take them on himself. Besides it wouldn't change anything. His parents would still be dead. He decided it was time to go home, give the professor his news about the little group, and tell Tara what he had found out. She was perceptive enough to notice when something was bothering him. He'd let his foster father know that he had made it back safe.

Remy couldn't wait to see Tara and thee kids again. Having their love and them being safe was the most important thing in his life.

 

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