Thick as Thieves - REVIEW THIS STORY

Written by Valerie Jones and Lori McDonald
Last updated: 01/02/2007 02:01:11 AM

Chapter 10

With a thunderous sneeze, the bodyguard began to shiver, trying to stay warm in his thick coat, scarf, gloves and boots.

"I think Frank is cold," Diedre giggled.

Bobby grinned. "Then maybe he'll leave."

Diedre smiled up at him, her eyes shining. They were at Michael's penthouse in the outdoor swimming pool that had been emptied for the winter. After two months of showing her little tricks in the Club, enough people had complained about the cold that Michael had finally relented and ordered Bobby to come and train his wife here. Gambit had almost had a fit, all but telling him not to do it, that it was too dangerous, but Gambit still didn't know that Diedre was the woman Bobby was in love with. Even if the Cajun had flat out ordered him, Bobby wouldn't have obeyed, and the older man had finally given in as well, after three straight hours of arguing hadn't gotten him anywhere. It was the first time Bobby had really won a serious argument with him without feeling like he'd only done it out of luck, and in fact, he'd left Remy wondering why teaching the Guild Master's wife could be so important. Seeing confusion on the Cajun's face had actually caused him to laugh out loud, then get hit in the face with a lightly charged pillow. Gambit was at home on 12 hour monitor duty right now, as punishment from Scott for skipping out of his last three assigned duty sessions, and to make up for the time he owed. Remy hated nothing worse than sitting in front of a screen doing nothing. Bobby would have felt sorry for him if he wasn't so happy right now.

"Be nice," Diedre whispered, glancing up at the shivering Frank where he paced along the edge of the pool. "Frank is my friend."

Bobby struck a gallant pose. "But does he know about us?"

She giggled again. It was a wonderful sound. "Of course he does. He's empathic."

Bobby deflated, suddenly envisioning Michael descending on him for daring to be in love with his wife. "He is?"

She nodded and tapped his nose. "And exactly what us are you talking about, Teach?"

Her words almost caused him to deflate further, but there was a shy glimmer in her eyes, a glow he knew was reflected in his own.

Oh, God, I want her, he thought. I want to spend the rest of my life with her. I want to make love to her right now. Somehow, though, he doubted Frank would let anything that obvious just slide by. It was far better to concentrate on business and not let himself touch her at all, or else he'd lose all control.

Some teacher I'd be then.

Stepping regretfully away from her, he held up his hand, and slowly grew a icy candle out of the center of it, complete with dancing flame. "Try this."

Diedre nodded and concentrated. She wasn't as powerful as he was, or her powers were stunted from lack of practice, and he'd found that she wasn't really capable of creating any of the elaborate sculptures he was. Nor could she cover herself with ice. The below freezing temperature in the pool was his work, to make it easier for her to use what powers she could.

As she worked, Bobby let his eyes drift over her. Unlike her bodyguard, she was dressed in a black miniskirt and a white camisol. She'd taken the accompanying black jacket off before they got into the pool, and while the black made her look drained, the white shimmered nicely with her hair. She was prettier than he'd seen her since the library.

Yellow would be the perfect color for her, he thought happily. Yellow or maybe pale blue, but definitely yellow. I'd kill to see her in that color.

"I did it!"

Bobby shook out of his reverie to see she'd created a little stub of a candle in her palm, only a few inches high and definitely slanted to one side, but with a tiny flicker at the top. A little haze of snow fell around her, settling into her hair.

"Good work," he congratulated her. He'd been able to do better since before he joined the X-Men, but for her, it was a real accomplishment.

She laughed, something he never saw her do in the club. "That was hard. That's the closest I've gotten to making something look like I want it to." She blushed. "Most of the time I wind up with mutated icecubes."

He laughed too. "Icecubes are good. That's what I started with too." He turned his hand over and icecubes rained out from it to the bottom of the pool, changing to a polygon shape. "Here you go, diamonds for my lady."

Her breath caught and for a moment, she looked so beautiful Bobby almost fell to his knees in awe. "Oh, Bobby, thank you."

"You're welcome," he stammered, and on impulse, reached out to her, tracing a finger along her collarbone and leaving a trail of ice diamonds behind, forming a necklace for her. "I wish I could give you the real thing."

She shook her head, trembling. "No. These are just perfect. I don't want any of the real ones, they're not... cold enough."

For a long minute, the two stared at one another, blue eyes to blue eyes as snow fell around them. Bobby noted happily that her breath didn't mist in the cool air any more than his did. She was as cold inside as he was. He thought of holding that icy cold body and shook himself.

"Uh, do you want to learn anything more tonight?"

She smiled dreamily. "I want to turn to ice, the way you did at the library."

He chuckled. "I think that's a little advanced for you yet, but we'll get there."

She pouted for a moment, then smiled again. "Then I want to play," she decided and threw a snowball at him.

Bobby sputtered, spitting out the snow as she laughed and ran, though of course the ladder was too high for her to get out of the pool without help unless she went to the shallow end. She was headed for the deep end though, and Bobby took that as permission to chase her. Whooping, he did so. Diedre was fast, though, kicking off her heels and running around in her bare feet, dodging away every time he tried to grab her. He wasn't sure what he'd do with her if he did catch her, but for the moment it was good enough just to run, to feel the cold and to chase the woman he loved.

Finally, he had her backed into a corner, though he wasn't sure if that was because of his skill as an X-Man or because she'd let him. He desperately hoped it was the latter. She giggled at him as he advanced, hunching over with his hands outstretched and hooked like claws.

"I've got you now, little girl," he boomed in a mock deep voice.

She gasped in pretend horror and suddenly bolted to one side. He lunged for her and suddenly slipped and crashed to the ground.

"You froze the floor!" He cried, inordinately pleased.

"I had a good teacher," she yelled, headed for the other side of the pool.

"Then learn this!" he cried and sent ice shooting after her, a forest that towered out of the pool as it raced after her, forming itself into curves and swirls in a thousand shades of blue and white. It was as if the entire surface of the pool had suddenly exploded with thousands of icy hands that raced after Diedre in a tumbling wave that mutated and changed, reforming itself as it went. Diedre shrieked as it surrounded her, catching her around the waist and lifting her off the ground. The crystalline hands wove together as they rose, building an incredibly elaborate, whorled structure, so complex that it almost seemed to take on a life of its own. Sunlight reflected from a million icy facets, filling the air with rainbows.

Without thought, Bobby transformed to his ice form. An ice slide brought him to the base of the structure while it was still rising, and it was almost easy to join it. He melded his slide into the ever- changing lattice and let his own form behave similarly. Elongated, twisting and turning, he rose inside the structure, weaving around and through the geometric perfection. He reached the top of the tower and returned to the more familiar human ice-shape.

Diedre was cradled by the ice in a little pocket that was hidden from the sky, though the ice refracted the glow from the pool lights so that it was as bright as day. Brighter even, though neither of them were bothered by the glare that shone off of the ice. Diedre sat quietly in the midst of the chrysalis, her expression awed.

"Oh, Bobby," she whispered.

"What?" He asked, a little self-conscious.

"You're so beautiful."

There was very little room in the pocket, and she made no move to resist as he knelt over her, the cold rising off of him. "Thanks. No one's ever said that to me before. But I'm nowhere near as beautiful as you."

She smiled. "Silly."

Forgetting where he was, who she was, he bent over her. "Am I?" He whispered.

Only a inch from his own, her lips parted slightly and she swallowed. "We shouldn't be doing this," she whispered.

"Why not?"

"I'm married."

He reached down to hold her hand. She didn't pull away, the only woman who ever hadn't when he was in his ice form.

How can I feel so hot when I'm so cold? He wondered.

"I don't care," he whispered back. His ice lips barely brushed hers and she clutched his hand tightly.

They heard Frank cough from somewhere above them on the pool edge.

"Michael's coming."

Instantly, Diedre went absolutely white. Bobby collapsed the ice tower with such speed that it felt like they were plummeting into the empty pool below. Diedre barely seemed to notice. Struggling away from him, she squirmed out of the ice and out of the pocket, climbing up toward the edge of the pool where Frank helped her out. Sighing, Bobby turned back to flesh and blood and followed her. He'd just gotten out of the pool himself when Michael walked out onto the patio and stopped.

"Cripes, why is it so bloody cold out here?!"

Blushing, Bobby gestured at the pool and the ice he'd created dispersed back into water molecules in the atmosphere. The temperature quickly climbed back to normal and Michael walked over to kiss Diedre sparingly on the cheek.

"I take it you've managed to learn something of value?"

Diedre blushed and held out her hand. Proudly, she recreated the candle she'd made earlier, complete with flame.

Michael barely glanced at it. "A cheap party trick," he commented and turned to Bobby as she wilted behind him. "Why haven't you taught her anything useful?"

There was nothing more Bobby wanted to do than freeze him solidly into place, but behind him, he saw Diedre shake her head no and he resisted the urge. "She has to learn the basics and build up her strength," he told the thief. "But she's making real progress. You should be proud of her." Michael frowned and he thought desperately. "Uh, I think it may be possible that she'll be able to learn to supercool metal, and do things like shatter locks and maybe vault doors." Diedre looked stunned, but Michael nodded.

Michael lifted his chin. "Very well. You may leave." He turned his back. "Didi, we have an engagement at the symphony tonight. I expected you to be dressed already."

"Sorry, Michael," she apologized. "I lost track of time. I'll be ready in a minute." She hurried into the house, and without another look at Bobby, Michael followed her. Frank looked at him sympathetically and did the same.

Left alone, Bobby sighed and did the only thing he really could. He went home.

Remy stared mindlessly at the monitor screen, elbow on the table, head on his hand.

Dis is what I get for f'getting t' show up f' monitor duty t'ree times in a row, he thought with a snarl. Scott had offered to let him make up the time over several nights, but no... he had to decide to do all three sessions at once.

Least I got an 'xcuse f' bein' a basketcase t'morrow morning, he thought.

Leaning back in his chair, he thought of the reasoning behind twelve straight hours staring at a computer which he was sure would function just as effectively without him being there.

Dis is all Bobby's fault. He's de one who should be sittin' here.

The thought was somewhat petty, but he was cranky enough he let himself revel in it. He'd skipped out on monitor duty so he could train the younger man, and he was sitting here now so that he wouldn't miss out on working with him for the rest of the week.

Why you tryin' so hard t' make him a t'ief, miseur LeBeau? he wondered to himself. It not like he goin' t' be makin' a livin' at dis.

When it came down to it, he trained Bobby because he enjoyed it. He'd had no idea how much he'd enjoy it, passing his skills on to someone else, just as his father did with him. It was something he'd already concluded to himself he'd never be able to do, what with turning his back on stealing himself when he joined the X-Men. As well as the increasing likelihood that he'd never have any children to pass anything on to.

Remy sighed. Bobby may have only been a little younger than him, but he was willing to learn, for his own reasons, and Remy wanted to teach someone. Just as he had been teaching Storm before she remembered she wasn't a little girl and that she'd sworn not to steal. It'd hurt when he saw his little protege transformed back into her adult form. Until that moment, she'd been his immortality, the repository of everything he'd learned.

Now he had Bobby. The reasoning was different than his own, but the knowledge was still being passed on. Bobby would be able to continue on after him.

He smiled. Y' ain' dat old yet, y' fool. An' Bobby prob'ly won' see it de same way. Still, it felt good. He had to admit that.

The computer blipped and he glanced at the screen. Sam was walking across the patio in the backyard. Whoopee. Briefly, he considered turning on the defense grid and giving the boy an impromptu Danger Room session, but he sensed that Scott would disapprove.

Prob'ly have m' balls hangin' by breakfast, he thought with a grin. It might be fun though. Getting into trouble just to see what happened was one of his favorite pastimes. It also landed him in the hospital most too.

Boredom decided him against it. Yawning, he slouched down in his chair and closed his eyes. He was a man capable of staying awake for days at a time, of holding still without moving for hours and of having the patience to get past a motion detector by moving slowly enough that it didn't sense him. But monitor duty always put him to sleep. It wasn't a big deal, he mused to himself as he nodded off. He was a light sleeper. He'd know Scott was coming long before he caught him.

Though, he didn't actually know for sure if Wolverine was in the mansion.

"Women are wonderful."

Remy leaped out of a sound sleep at the sound of that voice, his heart hammering like the Blackbird's engine at full throttle. "I'm awake!" He cried before the tone and the words sank in. He turned the chair around.

"Bobby?"

Iceman looked at him skeptically from the doorway. "You know, Scott will have you on monitor duty for the next month if he finds you sleeping at your station."

To cover the fright he'd had, Remy stretched and grinned. "Nah, he won' catch me. 'Sides, who wants someone who sleep sittin' in here?"

"Uh huh. I know Scott. He'll stand right behind you for your whole shift just to be sure you stay awake."

Remy considered that and his grin faded. He knew Scott too. "Yeah, yeah. Well, you look happy," he said to change the subject. "Y' see y' ladyfriend t'night?"

Bobby's face melted into a sappy smile that Remy was getting very used to seeing. "Yeah. It was great."

The Cajun raised an eyebrow, feeling very much in a teasing mood. "If it so great, why you home so early?"

Just as he'd expected, Bobby turned red. It was a little harder to make him look like a beet than it used to be, but it could still be done. "She's not that kind of girl!"

"Uh huh." Remy suddenly didn't have the heart to tease him, not about this. He'd romanced a lot of women in his time, without really caring for most of them, and the only one he'd truly loved was the only one he hadn't slept with. Thinking of her still hurt and he wondered if he'd ever gotten Bobby's goofy grin on his face when she still lived in the mansion. "Y' still sure y' love her, neh?"

Bobby came over and sat in the other chair. "Completely. You can't know how it feels to love someone so totally." Remy raised an eyebrow and he blushed again. "Sorry. But I do love her. I want to spend the rest of my life with her. But I don't know if I can." He stared at his hands. "I don't know if I'll ever be able to even touch her," he murmured. "You know how that feels?"

In a moment of complete understanding and totally open camaraderie, Remy reached out and gripped his shoulder tightly. "Yes, I do," he said.