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Chapters
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
 
 
 

Ennui de Famille - REVIEW THIS STORY

Written by Paws
Last updated: 01/26/2007 02:19:59 AM

Chapter 8

It was at lunch the next day when school came up again. Remy had been half expecting it, having heard enough about his cousin’s and his uncle’s schooling to know that they placed a high value on education. Mercy had hauled Talia off somewhere to help her with the party preparations, and so that had left just the three men to linger over their coffees.

“So dis is y’re first year at y’re university, neh? Any ideas on a general direction y’ want t’ go in?” His uncle glanced up from the sheaf of papers that he’d hauled out and started running through the minute they’d finished their meals.

“Non, not really. Don’t even know if dere is anythin’ t’ major in.” His uncle and cousin both shot him a look of utter disbelief at that.

“How can y’ not major in anything? What courses are y’ takin’?” Henri asked.

Remy listed them off. “We also take dis sort of self defense class.”

“Well, what are y’ plannin’ on doin’ after y’ve graduated? What line of work are y’ interested in?” Jean-Luc was completely ignoring his papers by now.

“Well, uh, haven’t much thought of it.” Remy shrugged. “Guess dat Remy was just thinkin’ of doin’ d’ same thing he did before.”

His uncle twisted his mouth up at that. “Well, didn’t dey ask y’ anything when y’ applied? Y’ never went an’ talked with dem about that sort of thing?”

“Non.” Remy shrugged. “Didn’t apply – dey invited me. Thought dat it would be somethin’ different – N’awleans wasn’t d’ same after Katrina went through. Didn’t worry too much about why dey wanted me – thought dat it was some sorta outreach program or somethin’. As for gettin’ in, guess dat bein’ a freak was enough for dem.”

“Don’t call y’reself dat. Y’re not – an’ neither is y’re girlfriend. How d’ y’ think she’d take y’ sayin’ dat?”

Remy felt himself flush in embarrassment. He hadn’t meant it that way – he’d just meant to be dismissive of himself. Shrugging it off, he picked up his coffee. “Its just dat Remy hasn’t thought about it much.”

“Well…it sounds like at least dey are givin’ y’ a good base t’ work off of, neh?” Henri chimed in. “Y’ still have time t’ think it over, and if y’ can’t get what y’ want at y’re school, den y’ can always transfer.”

He laughed at that. “Oh oui, Remy’s sure dat dere will be a whole buncha places dat are willin’ t’ take a ‘unique’ person like him.” He shook his head. “Not t’ mention dat dis is d’ first time dat Remy’s even bothered with school.”

“You’ve never been? Ever? Not even when y’ were with y’re parents?” Jean-Luc sighed and shook his head. “Never mind, of course not. Still – how did y’ learn t’ read an’ stuff den?”

“Maman taught me a bit, learned d’ rest myself.” Remy shifted in his seat, wanting to escape. Dieu why did everything always come back to that? He hated thinking about his childhood, but it just kept coming up in conversation. Understandably, but still - all the talking in the world wasn’t going to change it.

“Well, y’re in school now anyways, an’ y’ can get what y’ need from dat. We’ll worry about tryin’ t’ work dat into transfers once y’ figured out what y’ want t’ do.” Jean-Luc laced his fingers. “Of course, d’ better y’ do in school d’ easier dat will be. How are y’ doin’ so far?”

Remy grimaced. “What I did went ok, suppose. Not d’ best at it, an’ missed a couple of months of classes. Don’t really get why it’s so important anyway.”

“What d’ y’ mean? Of course it’s important. People don’t take y’ seriously no more unless y’ got some letters after y’re name.” His uncle was clearly upset, and Remy found himself feeling sullen over it. “What d’ y’ mean y’ just missed it?”

“Oh oui, like dey are gonna take a red eyed guy seriously anyway, neh? Dey are all gonna be linin’ up t’ hire Remy. Don’t matter what Remy’s got, paper ain’t gonna change d’ facts.”

He jumped as his uncle’s fist hit the table, making the cups jump and rattle. “So what? Y’ gonna just keep y’reself from tryin’ to achieve anythin’? A good education is d’ best gift dat anyone can get! An’ y’ don’t care about it? Y’re just throwin’ it away?”

“Look – it isn’t like it would change anythin’ anyway.” Remy found himself half yelling at his uncle, Henri backing completely out of the conversation to watch the two of them glare at each other over the table. “It’s not like Remy needs t’ know dat kind of stuff anyway. What good is it gonna do!”

“Well for one y’ might take some pride in it! Can’t imagine dat y’d not care t’ expand y’re horizons a bit…y’ want t’ just stick in d’ same rut y’ve been in all dese years? Have y’ no desire t’ accomplish somethin’ in y’re life?” His uncle was in a fine state by now, his blue eyes snapping.

He stood up suddenly, shoving his chair back. “Remy has accomplished stuff! Made it t’ twenty. Dat’s more den most d’ kids on d’ streets can claim.” He turned and swept out of the room without a word.

***************

Jean-Luc sat frozen for a moment, feeling like an ass. The empty chair stood askew, silently accusing. Henri just looked at him as if he didn’t know what to say. He’d pulled him and Mercy to the side and explained a bit of Remy’s past to them to save Remy having to go through that again with them, but it was one thing to hear it objectively and another to face it.

But hearing those words tossed out just served to remind him again that he wasn’t dealing with a typical unfocused young man. Remy wasn’t his brother…a lazy lay about. He wouldn’t be where he was in life otherwise.

“I was too hard on him wasn’t I?” He asked Henri, laying his forehead in the palm of one hand.

“Maybe…but y’ were right in tryin’ t’ get him t’ realize dat he’s got t’ pay attention t’ what he’d doin’. School’s important papa.”

“Oui, it is. But y’ can’t blame him for feelin’ the way he does either, neh?” He sighed. “I’d better find him.”

Pushing his own chair back, he took the time to tuck his and Remy’s both in before heading down the hall. He asked a servant if he’d seen Remy and was pointed out to the back. It took him a while of wandering before he found the boy crouched down, with his back to a tree, smoking.

Remy barely glanced up at him, before looking back at the toe of his shoe that he was grinding into the lawn. “Shouldn’t have said d’ things dat I did.” He took another drag, blowing it out slowly. “Y’ were just tryin’ t’ help.”

He crouched down beside him, heart aching for the quiet boy next to him. He sighed. No – Remy was no boy, despite of how he may feel. Hell – he still thought of Henri as a boy, and he was in his thirties. But his nephew hadn’t been a boy for quite some time.

“I shouldn’t have come down on y’ so hard. Y’ve done well for y’reself. Y’ could be on smack, or any other sort of thing. But y’re not. I’m proud of y’.”

That got his attention. Remy’s eyes jerked up to his own, watching him cautiously before he took another long drag and looked away, studying a bush with an odd intensity. “Dere is enough other stuff dat Remy’s done t’ make up for dat. Nothin’ much in my past t’ be proud of.”

“Y’re scared aren’t y’?” He watched the muscles in Remy’s jaw jump at that. “Scared dat one of dese times y’ll tell me somethin’ an’ I’ll cast y’ out. Like my pere did y’re papa, neh?” He reached out to lay a hand on Remy’s shoulder, half expecting it to be shrugged off. “Remy, y’ are nothin’ like y’re pere. An’ I am never gonna turn from y’.”

Remy just curled into himself more as he talked. Damnit…he’d gone and screwed things up royally this time. How was he supposed to reach him? He didn’t know how to fix this. His nephew had been through things that he was sure he couldn’t even imagine, and yet he was saying that he’d unconditionally accept it? He wouldn’t believe him either if he were in Remy’s shoes.

“Can y’ lend me a smoke?”

Remy’s gaze returned to him at that, one eyebrow lifting in that familiar way. “Didn’t know y’ smoked.”

“Non, I don’t. Well, I don’t now…quit about ten years ago. Those things will kill y’.” he snorted at the look his nephew gave him at that. “Oh oui, I know…just pass one over will y’?”

Remy lit one for him, in that unique way of his, and lit another for himself. They smoked in silence for a bit, some of the tension slowly bleeding out of the long lanky body sitting alongside of him.

“So, how about y’ tell me the worst things y’ve done an’ we’ll just get dat shit out of d’ way.” He laughed as Remy choked a bit on his smoke. “Well, what? Y’ll ‘ave nothin’ t’ lose by doin’ it. If I’m gonna get upset an’ toss y’ out on y’re ass, its best dat I do it now den later when we get t’ like each other even more, neh?”

Remy blinked at him. “Suppose so. What d’ y’ want t’ know?”

“Anythin’ dat y’re scared of tellin’ me, I suppose.” Jean-Luc leaned back against the tree, his shoulder rubbing up against Remy’s. “Y’ may be able t’ shock me, but y’ aren’t gonna make me wanna let y’ go. But y’ ain’t gonna believe dat till we do it, so – come on. Do y’re worst.”

Remy snorted in a mixture of amusement and disbelief, but thankfully he didn’t pull away. “Well, for starters, Remy drinks a lot. An’ smokes. An’ not just cigarettes.”

Ok…not so bad. “So y’ smoke pot den? Anything stronger?”

“Well, Remy’s tried other stuff once or twice, but pot an’ booze are d’ only things dat Remy’s ever stuck with. An’ watchin’ Maman and Papa? Don’t ever want t’ end up dat way.”

“Smart choice. Y’ still have t’ watch y’re drinkin’ and smokin’ though, y’ know. So what else?”

“Remy’s careful. Just enjoyin’ myself – not married t’ it or nothin’.” He shifted beside him. “Y’ know dat Remy stole from y’…also stolen from a lot of d’ places around here. Probably from a lot of y’re friends too. Everythin’ dat Remy has was either stole or bought from stuff dat was stolen.”

“Oui, knew about d’ stealin’. Not sayin’ it’s right, but can understand why y’ did it. Dat’s only part of d’ reason dat I think y’ should be payin’ more attention in class though. Most of its just cause y’ need t’ take pride in what y’ do. I know y’re smart enough t’ do it – try as y’ will t’ tell me no y’re not. So what else?”

Remy snorted and gave him an odd look, but shrugged and kept on with it. “I’ve fought when I was a kid. Don’t think dat I’ve ever killed anyone, but y’ never know. Never meant t’ at least. Just wanted dem t’ leave me d’ hell alone.” Remy sighed. “But dunno. At d’ least I’ve probably left some people with some bad injuries. Even fought once with one of d’ guys from school.”

“Y’ fight for d’ fun of it? Cause y’ could?” Remy shook his head in reply. “Den y’ did what y’ needed t’.” Jean-Luc finally extinguished the butt of his cigarette. “Dieu but dat’s a guilty pleasure right dere. Mercy’ll have my hide if she smells it on me. Y’ watch dat woman, Remy – or she’ll flush every smoke y’ own before y’ can say boo.”

Remy snorted and flicked his own butt away, charging it so that it blew with a small pop to leave no residue.

“So – most of dat I knew…an’ none of its all dat bad.” He cocked his head. “Y’ said y’ missed out on a couple of months of school. Suppose we can add skippin’ t’ dat too, neh?” He regretted his words when Remy tensed up again, all the work he’d done to put him at ease dissipating.

“Well – dat was probably one of d’ stupidest things dat Remy’s done yet. Got myself into enough trouble, but even worse was dat I drug Talia down with it too.”

Remy stopped for a long moment, almost to the point where he wondered if he was going to tell him at all, but then the words just tumbled out. “Stole from d’ kids dat we live with at d’ school. Was dumb things – not d’ same as when I steal for money. Don’t even know why really. Dey found out.”

Remy started tearing at the blades of grass at his feet. “Well – dey found out – an’ were all pissed. One of d’ teachers pulled Remy aside, an’ while was talkin’ t’ him, just decided dat it was best t’ just leave. Didn’t fit dere. So – dere was dis other group nearby. D’ leader of it said dat people like Remy an’ Talia - mutants dat look different, dat dey shouldn’t have t’ hide.”

He took a deep breath. “He said dat we should fight for our place in d’ world. So went t’ Talia an’ begged her t’ come, even though she was doin’ ok in school an’ was happy dere. Just cause it would make me happy t’ have her with me. Wasn’t thinkin’ of what was best for her – was thinkin’ of what was Remy wanted.”

“So d’ school didn’t kick y’ out den? Y’ chose t’ leave?” He wanted to make sure that he understood this. “But y’re back dere now, right?”

“Oui…we just came back a couple weeks ago. After d’ fight.”

“Fight?” Remy was refusing to even glance in his direction now. “Y’ mean y’ fought with someone at dis group?”

Remy sighed. “Non. D’ thing with d’ group is dat it was a place for everyone t’ live an’ work together…but dey also did stuff dat we didn’t know about when we first got dere. Was a fool t’ not see it though – everyone else was suspicious as hell of dem – but all could see was dat dey let y’ do y’re own thing, an’ dat dey weren’t ashamed of bein’ mutants. Were willin’ t’ fight for it. D’ problem was dey didn’t care who dey hurt in makin’ dere point. Talia was miserable as all hell dere, but kept tellin’ her it would get better – we just had t’ stick it out.”

Remy grimaced again, tossing small pebbles to the side. “ Stole stuff for dem at first – but dat was like helpin’, cause it was medicines and stuff. But den…things just went downhill from dere. One of d’ guys from d’ school came an’ blew up d’ main house t’ get back at dem for threatening one of d’ girls at the school. Didn’t know dey had done dat to her.”

“So…what was dis group Remy? How did y’ find out about it?” He itched for another smoke, but decided to leave it since Remy had abandoned his pack.

“D’ leader spotted me one night – invited us along t’ see about it.” He shrugged. “Went, an’ liked what he had t’ say. Dey call demselves d’ ‘fringes’. Dey live up on a sort of farm up in N’ York.”

“An’ dis boy dat blew d’ house? Did y’ fight him den?”

“Warren? Non. Jono – he’s d’ leader of d’ fringes – he said dat dere was dis research facility dat was doin’ all sorts of research into people like us. Stuff dat would hurt mutants. So we were supposed t’ bomb it.”

“What?” He quickly quelled his surprise, not wanting to shut Remy down again. “Sorry – go on.”

“Well…we were supposed t’ do it when dere wasn’t many people around – so no one got hurt. At least no one dat wasn’t already hurtin’ people, y’ know? But den d’ people dat we were goin’ t’ school with showed up. An’ dat’s when things went all t’ hell. Never thought dat I’d have t’ fight any of dem – it didn’t even cross my mind. But, dey showed, an’ for a while believed dat was still doin’ d’ right thing by being dere with d’ fringes.”

Remy finally flicked his gaze his way for a minute. “Y’ say dat Remy’s smart? Here’s y’re proof dat he wasn’t. Dere was enough explosives dere t’ take out a lot more dan just the research buildin’. Caught a look at it after I’d been busy fightin’ d’ people who were just tryin’ t’ stop it. T’ top it all off – Talia got hurt in d’ fight – y’ saw her cast. So did a lot of d’ others - some of dem really bad. None of dat should have happened – it wouldn’t have if Remy didn’t drag her dere.”

“Was anyone killed?”

“Non. Japh’s bugs ate d’ bomb before it could do anythin’. But den one of dem – Meanie – was killed. Don’t know if t’ count dat as an amputation or what.” He found himself puzzling at that – bugs? But he decided to leave it for later.

“Sent Talia home with dem – couldn’t look after her injuries myself, an’ wasn’t right t’ ask her t’ stay with me after all dat. But couldn’t stay away neither – so came back an’ snuck into d’ school t’ see her. Got caught by d’ guy dat runs it – an’ had a bit of a chat with him. So – still tryin’ t’ make up for it, though don’t know if Remy can ever do dat…but guess dat we’re back at d’ school for a while. Was a blind fool, just wantin’ t’ make myself happy, instead of facin’ up t’ what I’d done. Been tryin’ t’ make it up t’ everyone.”

It was so much to take in, but ultimately it changed nothing. If anything, it just showed him how strong of a character his nephew did have. He had a conscience too – maybe not always making the right decisions, but pulling for the greater good in the end. “So dis teacher – dis man dat runs d’ school, what did he say?”

“Well…suppose mainly dat it was a mistake – bad one sure enough, but it shouldn’t keep me away. He explained more why he set up d’ school. An’ dat he wanted Remy t’ come back an’ stay dere.”

“So he forgave y’ den?”

Remy nodded, facing him again. “Oui, suppose dat he did. Still don’t make any of what Remy did OK though.”

“Non, it doesn’t. But y’re tryin’ t’ make it good, oui? Y’ can’t undo d’ past – all y’ can try t’ do is fix what y’ve done wrong.” He rubbed the spot between his brows, a small headache forming from trying to puzzle everything out. “Y’ think dat dis man can forgive y’, but I can’t?”

Remy just looked at him contemplatively for a while. “Didn’t think of it dat way.”

“Well, y’ best start Remy. Y’ have no idea how stubborn dat I can be about family.”

He got an honest smile in return, before Remy ducked his head again. “Oh…an’ dere is just one other thing.” Remy squirmed a bit away from him at that, reducing his body contact even further. “Talia’s not my first girlfriend.” He smiled a bit abashedly at that. “Actually, wouldn’t call d’ others girlfriends exactly…more like brief companions really.”

Jean-Luc snorted at that. “So y’re tellin’ me y’ve slept around a bit?”

Remy actually blushed at that. No slight colouring, but a full on blush. Jean-Luc found himself intrigued. “So, more dan a bit I’m takin’ it?”

Remy gave him a small twisted smile. “Oui, y’ could say dat. Was careful about it, mind, but Remy’s been with a lot of people.” He seemed to stumble on the next part, before plowing ahead. “An’ not just d’ femmes either.”

That was something that he didn’t see coming. Somehow his nephew came off as the typical young heterosexual man to him. He tipped his head studying him for a minute. Yet, really, it wasn’t that big of a deal right? He’d dealt with ‘I may have killed a man’ and ‘I nearly blew up a building’ so the fact he’d slept with…whoever…shouldn’t matter right? It didn’t change who Remy was.

“So y’ done den? Anythin’ else?” he couldn’t help but sigh in relief when his nephew shook his head no. “Well, we made it though dat den. Suppose y’re stuck with me, neh?”

Remy gave him a smile that he couldn’t help but answer. Lord but this boy was exhausting. But he was worth it.

 

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