Chapter Text
The Present: Somewhere in the Atlantic
Gambit’s eyes fluttered open, sand caked in his eyelashes.
He slowly sat up and wipes the sand from his face, not so easy when his hands were also sandy. He was on a beach he didn’t have a hope of recognising. It was hot, and his throat was dry and head aching from dehydration.
The last thing he remembered was his compulsion to go east. It led him to a bar in Ohio, where he got to chatting with a sexy brunette dressed in green with a streak of white in her hair, to whom he’d enjoyed an instant attraction. He grunted. He supposed she was part of some gang that had ripped him off somehow. He figured he should be glad he was on a beach somewhere and not lying in a bathtub full of ice.
Panic struck him, and he immediately started checking his coat. It was much too hot to wear it anyway, so he pulled it off and the first thing he noticed was that it wasn’t the same coat. It was similar, but not the same. Strangely, though, the coat had all the hidden pockets he usually customised his coats with.
He started going through the pockets, but although there was some water damage to his things everything seemed to be there. In fact, one pocket was even waterproofed, and that was where he found his passport, his wallet, his phone, and a couple of gold rings. The equivalent pocket on the coat he remembered having hadn’t had a waterproofed pocket, but he was sure glad this one did.
Gambit put his things back into the pockets, slung the coat over his shoulder, and headed into the trees that grew beyond the beach. The shade was only marginally cooler, but it was better than having the sun beating down on his head. Since he couldn’t see any buildings, and knew he needed to get water soon, he turned his phone on so he could figure out where he was.
Without looking at anything else, he turned on Location. He didn’t normally have that turned on, given his profession and his preference to keep his location to himself. He frowned when his location came up as being some island he’d never even heard of. It took him a further minute to discover that he was somewhere between the east coast of the USA and west of Genosha. Genosha was the island nation that Magneto had taken over.
Gambit then checked the date and could only stare, dumbfounded as his brain tried to comprehend what was written there.
It was 18 months later than he expected.
Somehow he had lost a year and a half of his life.
The Past: A few weeks after the events of the prologue of episode 1, “Hindsight (Part 1)”
Rogue stared resentfully at Cyclops as he lay on the floor, his breakfast sitting untouched beside him. She was so sick and tired of looking after him.
“Seriously, Scott?” she demanded. “Are you trying to waste away?”
After the mysterious explosion that destroyed the mansion and made Jean Grey and Professor Xavier disappear, Scott had almost been cataonic with grief. They’d been doing their best to look after him, but it was getting harder and harder the more it went on. The majority of the school’s population had already gone back home to families that may or may not have known about their mutant status.
“You think we don’t love and miss them too?” Rogue practically snarled at him. “You think this doesn’t affect us too? What makes you think you have the right to lay there and give up?”
She turned on her heel and strode from the room.
She couldn’t stand this. She was tired of looking after someone who didn’t want to look after himself. She hated that everyone was leaving. And she really hated that Logan had still gone through with his plans to leave. Even in their worst hour, Logan still abandoned them.
Why was it so hard for her family to be together? Why did everything have to fall apart?
A wave of agony stuck her. Her knees buckled and she dropped to the ground. Her eyes watered and glazed over as a feeling of being sliced in two raked over her.
Then it was over.
Rogue breathed heavily, tears streaming down her cheeks. She ran her hands over herself, but there was no injury, no blood. She slowly stood up. Her knees hurt a little from the hard fall, but otherwise she was fine.
She took a few deep breaths.
She had to go west.
She had to go now.
Rogue was in the midst of grabbing her few meagre things for travel when Kurt walked in. He looked her over and frowned.
“You’re leaving?” he asked softly.
Rogue turned to look at him. “I have to go west.”
Kurt gave a nod. “Okay.”
“I don’t know why.”
“You don’t? Then why are you going?”
“I have no idea. I felt like I was being cut in half and now I have to go west,” Rogue said and slung her bag over her shoulder. “It makes no sense. None at all.”
“I see.”
“I’m sorry to leave you all. I really am,” she went on as she headed toward the door. “I never had any intention of leaving but I… I… I really have to go.”
Kurt nodded. “I do understand.”
“No, no you really don’t,” Rogue insisted, even as she continued to move towards the exit. “I’ve never felt anything like this. If I didn’t know better, I’d say a telepath was fiddling around with my head.”
Kurt frowned. “I see. Would you like to see Hank and—”
“No! No time! I have to go right now,” Rogue said, her pace getting faster. “Must go, right now. Can’t stay here another second. Can’t stay anywhere any longer than absolutely necessary. I must go west. West, and slightly to the south.”
She was barely aware of Kurt as he followed her out.
Rogue’s compulsion pulled her along, and the further she went, the more the urgency started to relax. Stranger still, she couldn’t pinpoint the exact location she needed to get to, since that seemed to change.
By the time she’d reached south-west Ohio, she was feeling much calmer and far less desperate to get to…wherever it was she needed to go. She even felt like she was almost there, which was particularly odd, since the impression she had when she first got the compulsion was that she had much further to go than this.
As she walked the street at the late hour, she had an urge to step into a local bar. Since she hadn’t been able to resist any urges lately, she walked right on in.
Rogue had intended to go straight to the bar for a drink, but her eyes were drawn towards the pool tables. They rested on a man with pool cue in hand. He was tall and lean, with shaggy brown hair and wearing a long, tailored coat. Despite his wearing dark sunglasses, Rogue was certain that his eyes met hers.
She wrenched her gaze away and continued walking to the bar. She felt like she’d just lived out the old “their eyes met across a crowded room” cliche. Even now her heart was racing from the instant attraction.
She got to the bar and barely registered the bartender asking her what she wanted. While she waited for her drink, she felt his presence move up beside her. She slowly turned her head towards him as he gave his order to the bartender.
“Evening, chère,” he said.
“Evening,” she replied, and hoped that her voice wouldn’t give away just how inexplicably nervous she was right now.
“I’m Remy,” he said and held his hand out to her. “I couldn’t help but notice you.”
Rogue had no words to describe all the things she was feeling in that moment.
“I thought I noticed you noticing,” she replied, and to her own surprise, reached her gloved hand towards his.
The moment their hands touched, an electric shiver ran through them. For a brief moment there was silence between them, and then Rogue realised that the compulsion to go somewhere, to be somewhere was gone. She had found what she needed to find.
“I’ve heard of sparks flying before,” Gambit said. “Didn’t think I would ever feel it.”
Rogue laughed nervously and was grateful for the bartender returning with their drinks.
“Mind if I join you?” Gambit asked as she turned to find a table.
“No, not at all,” Rogue found herself replying.
“Great.”
What was she doing? What was going on? What in the world could have possibly possessed her to go running to this guy?
“And may I know your name?” Gambit asked as they sat down at a table.
“Rogue,” she replied. “I’m Rogue.”
“Ahh, what an alluring name,” he said. “Sexy and mysterious.”
Rogue couldn’t help but smile. “Charmer.”
He smiled and took off his dark sunglasses. Rogue immediately got lost in his beautiful red and black eyes.
The moment was interupted by the feeling of pain. Again, she felt like she was being sawn in two. Then the moment passed, and they both gasped for breath.
“You… you felt that too?” Rogue asked.
“Like I was being cut in half? Yes.”
“Did… did you also feel a compulsion to go west?”
“I got a burning desire to go east.”
They stared at each other.
“What the hell is going on?” Rogue whispered, her voice barely audible over the din.
“I have absolutely no idea,” Gambit replied. “How do you feel about going to New Orleans with me?”
“Do you often ask women you’ve just met to take road trips with you?” Rogue asked.
“Not often, but it’s been known to happen,” Gambit said with a sly smile. “Doesn’t usually pan out though.”
“Uh huh.” Rogue took a sip of her drink. “I really think I should go back home. I have people who need me.” Though even has she said the words, the idea of returning to what was left of the mansion turned her stomach. It just wasn’t home anymore. She had no idea where home even was.
“Well, if you think you should, I’d be happy to go with you. I’ve got nowhere I need to be, and I definitely want a chance to get to know you better.”
Rogue sighed and took a big swig of her drink to avoid having to reply.
“Why do you want to go to New Orleans?” she asked finally.
“Ah, Tante Mattie lives there. She’s what you might call ‘a wise old mystic’,” he said. “I figure she might be able to help us find out what’s going on. I really hate that whole being cut in two sensation.”
“Yeah, that sucks,” Rogue had to agree. “But you want to go to a mystic? You believe in that stuff?”
“I believe that she’s the wisest person I know and is into all sorts of weird stuff,” he said and gave her a grin, “and this situation is definitely all sorts of weird stuff.”
“Can’t argue there.”
There was silence between them for a short time as they drank. Raucous laughter burst out from a nearby table, which caused them both to look, then their gaze returned to each other.
“We don’t have to go anywhere together if you don’t want to,” Gambit said cautiously. “We did just meet, and we’re still strangers no matter what brought us together.”
Rogue nodded. “I think that would be best.”
“Could I still get your number? I was serious when I said I’d like to get to know you better.”
Rogue sighed. “Look, Remy, let me be up front about this. I don’t know what kind of relationship you think we could have, but I’m not on the market.”
“Ah, boyfriend, huh?” Gambit said. “Lucky guy.”
“No, no boyfriend. Dangerous skin.”
Gambit blinked and only then seemed to realise that she was covered up, but for her face. “Mutation?”
“Yeah.”
“Huh. Well, you have such beautiful skin, I can’t say I’m surprised. Nature is full of the beautiful and deadly,” he replied smoothly. “May I ask how it’s dangerous?”
“I will absorb your thoughts, personality, mutant powers, and knock you into a coma, buddy,” Rogue replied, and skulled down the last of her drink.
“Fascinating.”
“Go be fascinated by something less likely to put you in the hospital.” She stood. “It’s been nice, but I should go.” And she walked away without waiting for a response.
This whole thing had to be a prank by someone. Maybe an empath. She knew empaths existed, but she didn’t know any personally. A telepath could also do it, but the only telepaths she knew were both missing. Whoever it was, whatever they were doing, if she found them, she’d kick their arse.
She strode fast-paced down the street the moment she was out of the bar. She slowed when she got to the end of the block as a reluctance to move away from Gambit hit her.
“Stupid,” she muttered to herself.
What was the point in getting all hot and bothered about a sexy, handsome man who was flirting with her? It could never go anywhere. It could never be anything. Life was not a cheesy romance novel.
The feeling of reluctance grew stronger the further she went. By the time she was three blocks away she was feeling decidedly uncomfortable. Her pace slowed further.
She had a feeling that if she moved far enough away, it would become painful.
Rogue stopped.
She knew she couldn’t just stay there, but she didn’t want to go back either. Except that she really, really did want to go back.
Why was whoever doing this trying to torture her so? Why must they taunt her with what she can’t have?
The discomfort began to lessen. Rogue wasn’t at all surprised when it vanished completely and Gambit stepped around in front of her.
“You know something, chère?” he said. “I’ve changed my mind. I think it would be a good idea if we stayed together.”
Rogue sighed and met his eyes, his beautiful, majestic eyes. “Yeah. I think so too.”
Neither had organised a place to stay yet, so they ended up renting a hotel room for the night. It was a cheap hotel, but clean and not at all seedy. The room was small, but it had two single beds.
Rogue found herself foolishly admitting to this charming stranger that most of her things had been destroyed when her home blew up, and that was why she was travelling light. She also figured she should probably start looking for a job before she went through her savings. She knew even as she was saying the words that she shouldn’t be telling all this to someone she’d only just met, and yet, somehow, beyond all reason she felt completely safe with him.
For his part, he shocked her with his admission of being a professional thief, and that he travelled light because he travelled a lot in general.
“Always on the run, huh?” Rogue asked.
“Sure, if by ‘on the run’ you mean ‘running to more adventure’,” Gambit replied with a sly grin.
Rogue chuckled.
By the time they went to sleep, well late into the night, they had all but exchanged life stories.
They slept late the next morning, but fortunately not late enough that they got charged for an extra day. Rogue had been travelling on foot, but Gambit had his motorcycle, so they headed off together towards New Orleans. Rogue was a little uncomfortable about having her arms around him, just out of her usual interest in avoiding skin contact, but otherwise she found it thrilling to be so close to a man she was so attracted to.
It had been less than twelve hours since they met, but it felt like they’d known each other for twelve years.
They stopped for food and fuel along the way, and then booked themselves into another hotel room for the night after a lovely dinner in a nice restaurant. This hotel was nicer than the previous one, with a balcony and two queen beds.
“It’s a nice night, isn’t it?” Gambit said as he joined Rogue on the balcony. “Seems a shame to spend it inside.”
Rogue smiled and turned to look at him. He’d just been in the shower and his hair was still wet. He was also shirtless, which took her by surprise. He’d kept a shirt on the night before. She realised that she was blatantly checking out his chest, blushed and turned her head away.
“Oh, um, yeah, nice night,” she said abruptly.
“See something you like, chère?” Gambit asked, moving up close behind her.
There was another crackle between them as his hand touched her waist. Rogue was relieved the sparks didn’t fly every time they touched. That would’ve made that day’s travel rather awkward.
“Maybe,” Rogue replied softly, her eyes on the quiet streets beyond the balcony railing.
“You can keep looking if you want,” he said, his voice becoming softer as he moved in closer. “I don’t mind.”
“Looking is about all I can do.” Rogue couldn’t keep the bitterness out of her voice.
This whole thing was maddening. She’d never felt so connected to anyone in her life. She’d never desired someone more, never felt her heart ache so. She felt like she was living in one of her romance novels.
“Maybe, maybe not,” Gambit said. “I’m sure we can manage to do a bit more than just ‘look’, if you’re interested.”
Rogue felt a shiver go down her spine at the mere tone of his voice. In her mind’s eye she was whirling around, pushing him up against the wall and kissing him with everything she had. She stifled a groan.
“This is stupid. We just met 24 hours ago,” she said. “I shouldn’t be even considering hooking up with you, even if it was possible.”
“People have hooked up in far less time, ‘course they usually don’t see each other again after,” Gambit replied thoughtfully. “Although there are those couples you hear about that go from first meeting to marriage in a week.”
There was an odd silence between them.
“You know,” Gambit went on, sounding a little troubled. “I always thought that people who got married that fast were crazy. And yet, right now, I could see myself doing that with you.”
He pulled back.
“You see? This is stupid,” Rogue said, feeling like she was going to cry. “I really hope your Tante Mattie has some answers for us, because this whole thing is madness.”
Ta nte Mattie ’s home
Gambit tied up the little wooden boat to the nearby post, and then hauled himself out. He turned to give Rogue a hand, but she was already halfway out herself before he’d finished.
“The old mystic who lives in the swamp feels a little cliche,” Rogue said as she looked around.
Gambit shrugged. “Maybe. Maybe some things are just naturally common and we demean them by calling them a cliche.”
Rogue grinned at him and he found himself dazzled by her once again. “Maybe! I promise I’ll be polite.”
“That would be appreciated,” he replied.
He took her hand in his, the action feeling so natural to him that he was having a hard time dealing with the idea they’d only met 36 hours ago. He knew he was a tactile person, but for things to feel so natural to him so quickly was mind boggling.
He also wished he hadn’t made his comment about marriage the night before. He’d been thinking about it a bit too much ever since, and was honestly shocked he hadn’t been instantly repulsed by the idea of marrying someone so soon. He certainly would’ve been before he ever laid eyes on Rogue.
They walked together down a path that meandered through the swamp and after a couple of minutes finally saw Tante Mattie’s home. It was small, and almost had a fairy tale quality about it, rather than being dark and foreboding like Gambit figured Rogue probably expected.
They walked up to the door, and Gambit knocked on it. He barely pulled his hand away from the second knock when the door opened. Tante Mattie looked out at them and gave a nod.
“Come in, come in,” she said. “I didn’t think it would take you long to come to me.”
Rogue gave Gambit a glance as she followed him inside.
The inside was fairly simple. The furniture was functional, but a little mismatched. The walls were lined with pictures and shelving. The shelves were full of all sorts of boxes and bottles and vials. The centre of the main room was bare.
“Ah, Tante Mattie, this is Rogue. We met a couple of days ago,” Gambit said quickly before anyone could throw around accusations of being impolite. “Rogue, this is my wonderful Tante Mattie, who I’ve been telling you about.”
“It’s nice to meet you,” Rogue said.
“Nice to meet you too. Come, sit,” Tante Mattie said. “I was just brewing some tea. Would you like some?”
“Yes, please,” Gambit replied and Rogue echoed his words.
Tante Mattie pulled out a couple of mugs and added them to her own on the bench.
“You know something is going on, then?” Gambit asked her. “With us?”
“Yes. The natural world is being disrupted,” Tante Mattie said. “When I went looking for the cause, my visions centred on you.”
“How could we possibly disrupt the natural world?” Rogue asked.
Tante Mattie offered Rogue a smile. “I never said you were causing it. The disruption to the natural world is, disturbingly, only a side-effect of the attack that someone is making on you.”
Gambit sighed and let go of Rogue’s hand with much reluctance. “So, someone is attacking us.”
“Indirectly. Most likely.”
“Okay, wait what?” asked Rogue. “The natural world is being disrupted, because we’re being attacked, but we’re not being attacked directly? What is happening?”
Tante Mattie didn’t reply straight away. Only when she had finished pouring the tea, set their cups in front of them, and settled down with her own did she speak further.
“Do you two believe in soulmates?” she asked after her first sip of tea.
Gambit jolted in his seat and slowly looked from Tante Mattie to Rogue.
“I would like to believe in soulmates,” Rogue said. “What’s that got to do with what’s going on?”
“Everything,” Tante Mattie said. “Drink your tea.”
Gambit blinked in surprise at the demand. The last time he remembered hearing her speak like that, his brother Henri had been sick in bed and was being stubborn about taking his medicine. He picked up his tea and drank the first sip.
“Everything?” Rogue questioned. “How?”
As he swallowed, a faint light caught his eyes. There, attached to himself and Rogue was a sparkling, golden cord. Gambit almost dropped his tea in shock.
“Tante Mattie… am I seeing things or…” Gambit asked slowly.
“You are seeing things, that doesn’t mean it’s not real,” Tante Mattie replied to him, and looked back at Rogue. “Drink your tea, Rogue.”
Rogue looked between them and slowly reached out for her tea.
“We’re soulmates, aren’t we?” Gambit said, his eyes still on the golden cord.
“Yes. True soulmates, to be specific.”
Rogue raised her eyebrows as she sipped her tea.
“What does that mean, exactly?” Gambit asked.
“Oh!” Rogue exclaimed as the tea took affect and she too focused on the golden cord between them.
“It means that your souls are not just bonded in this universe, but in all universes,” Tante Mattie said. “It’s very rare. That’s not to say that the same pair of souls can’t also be bonded in other universes, only they can just as easily be bonded with others. True soulmates are not so flexible. That’s not to say that you’re destined to be together in all universes. The circumstances of your lives dictate that.”
“Okay, but why the pain?” Rogue asked. “Why have we occasionally felt like we’re being cut in half? Why the compulsion to travel to each other? Why do we feel this absolute need to be with each other at all times? Why does moving further than a couple of blocks away feel so uncomfortable? Surely that’s not normal.”
Tante Mattie listened thoughtfully, sipped more of her tea, and gave a nod.
“You’re quite right, it’s not normal. What you describe is a side effect of the attack,” Tante Mattie said, and frowned thoughtfully. “In fact, the compulsions, the need to be with each other… That’s probably part of the bonding’s effort to protect itself.”
“What is this attack you keep mentioning?” Gambit asked.
“Someone is trying to cut the bonding,” Tante Mattie said, and gestured to the golden cord. “It’s highly unlikely to be anyone in this universe, therefore it must be someone in one of the other universes.”
“You can cut it?” Rogue asked.
“It is possible to cut a bond between in-universe soulmates,” Tante Mattie said as she sat back in her comfy chair with her cup. “I understand that it’s painful and it’s theorised that the two souls will never be truly fulfilled in life thereafter. A true soulmate bond needs to be strong enough to extend through the multiverse, however,” she pulled a single strand of her black hair, “a single strand is easily broken.” She pulled on a lock of her thick curly hair. “It’s not so easy to break the many.”
Gambit’s eyes fell on a tapestry on the opposite wall. “So someone is trying to cut the bond, but it’s too thick and strong and so their efforts are causing what, like a ripple effect throughout the multiverse? If they succeed in cutting the bond, does that mean Rogue and I in this universe will be cut off too?”
“I presume so,” Tante Mattie said. “I’ve never heard of it being done, but again, true soulmates are rare, and there’s no practical reason to do it. Malice, revenge, that’s why people do such things.” She seemed to consider that for a moment. “Although I suppose someone might want to cut a bond for protection purposes, if one of the souls was abusive in some fashion. I’m not sure that the good would outweigh the bad in that situation. As I said, the side-effects of the cutting are theorised to be quite grim.”
“So how does this disrupt nature?”
“Your bonding is woven into the very fabric of the universe. It must be, in order to bridge the multiverse. The ripple effect you mentioned, it impacts more than just you two, and all the other Rogues and Gambits out there. If the bond is broken,” Tante Mattie turned and pointed at her tapestry, “if the thread is pulled, there will be a hole in every universe in the multiverse. Theoretically, it may even lead to the collapse of the multiverse.”
“That seems a little extreme,” Rogue said cautiously, and shook her head. ”This whole situation is ridiculous. I’m not sure I can believe it. I’m sure there’s a mutant out there with the right set of mutant powers to trick me into experiencing what I’ve been experiencing the last two days, only why they would even bother, I have no idea.”
“I know how you feel,” Gambit said with a sigh, and looked back at Tante Mattie. “So, what do we do?”
“Unless you know how to travel the multiverse so you can hunt down and stop whoever’s trying to cut the bond,” Tante Mattie replied, “then the only thing you can do is hope someone else does.”
“Just sit here, twiddle our thumbs, and hope?” Gambit asked incredulously.
“Well, perhaps rather than twiddling your thumbs, you might try getting to know each other better.” Tante Mattie considered for a moment. “It may help to strengthen your bond further. The stronger the bond is, the better it is able to resist. I don’t know how much of a difference it would make, but then, I don’t think anyone can really know that.”
Rogue raised her eyebrows. “What are you saying, that we need to develop our relationship to save the multiverse? Sounds like the premise for a really bad romance novel.”
“No,” Tante Mattie said firmly. “The only way to save the multiverse is to stop the cutter. Developing your relationship is a stalling tactic at best. At worst, well, knowing Remy, I’m sure it will be a pleasant way to spend the rest of your life, however long we have left.” She gave Rogue a smile. “Soulmates don’t have to be romantic.”
“I want to be romantic,” Gambit said quickly. “It’s my favourite thing.”
Tante Mattie gave him a knowing look. “Your favourite thing?”
“Okay, second favourite thing, next to stealing.”
“That’s what I thought.”
“Although, it’s pretty close. I think if I ever met the right woman…” he trailed off and chuckled, then grinned at Rogue. “I guess I have met the right woman. How would you like to go on a date with me tonight, chere?”
Rogue was silent for a time, the picture of pain and yearning.
“C’mon, I guarantee you’ll have a great time,” he said, figuring she probably really wanted to say yes, but was used to protecting herself. “Besides, the multiverse could pull itself apart tomorrow. This is definitely the time to go for it.”
Rogue cracked a smile. “You know something, sugar? You’re probably right. This is not the time to pass up the chance to be swept off my feet. A date sounds wonderful.”