Chapter Text
What We Fight For: A Gambit and Rogue Fanfiction by BookwormDoll
Prologue — Mr. and Mrs. X
“Never thought I would see the day, Remy,” Ororo smiled to her fellow X-Man as she did his tie.
“No faith, eh, Stormy?” Gambit raised his brow in question.
“I would not say that.”
Remy was trying to see over his friend, peeking over her shoulders in hopes of glimpsing his favorite pair of green eyes…
Anna Marie, better known as Rogue, was trying to decide which color eyeshadow to apply.
“Use the green one. It brings out your eyes, and it matches your dress,” Illyana, Rogue’s teammate, snatched the green eyeshadow from her friend’s hands and began to swipe it on with a brush.
“Ah can’t believe this is happening,” Anna Marie breathed, her excitement making her southern accent even stronger.
“Me neither,” Illyana snorted.
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It means you and Gambit have been on-again-off-again for so long, we didn’t know if you would ever tie the knot.”
“You and me both, sugah…”
“Do you, Remy LeBeau, take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife?”
“I do,” Remy stared into those green eyes he’d been looking for.
“And do you, Anna Marie Raven, take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband?”
“Ah do,” she stared right back into her fiancé’s red-on-black eyes, smiling.
“I now pronounce you Man and Wife. You may kiss the bride.”
Oh, she knew this suppression collar was going to give her a pounding headache later, but it was worth finally getting to kiss the man she’s loved since she first laid eyes on him. To know that it was finally forever made her the happiest woman in the world.
A/N: If you would like to read more about Gambit and Rogue’s wedding, check out these two comics! X-Men: Gold #30 and Mr. and Mrs. X #1
Part One: No More Running
Chapter 1: Remy
When I open my eyes, Anna Marie is still cuddled up next to me, in my arms. I smile as it hits me for the billionth time what a beautiful woman she is. The same question plants itself in my mind: Why did a woman like her pick a man like me? A man who once made a living off being the best thief in New Orleans. A man who committed unspeakable crimes even after joining the X-Men. Deep down I’m grateful. Anna makes me a better man. Honestly? I’m better more for her than myself.
I feel her shift, her crystal wedding band glinting in the sunlight that is peering through a crack in our curtains before her hand falls heavily on my face. I flinch a little but loosen up as she trails her fingers down my face.
“Mornin’, Remy,” she murmurs, half-awake.
“Mornin’, Chère,” I flash her a grin before leaning in to kiss her. For the first few months after she regained control on her life-sapping powers, it was weird not being pushed away from touching her, but now? Now it was routine.
We pull apart and she slides off the bed. I stand up too and change into a black t-shirt and jeans as she slips into our closet. When she comes out, she’s wearing jeans and a Kelly Green t-shirt that makes her eyes pop. She gives me a mischievous smile and heads for our bedroom door.
Our house suited us, even though it was a little small. If you walked up our driveway, you’d find an archway encircling our front door. Open the door and you’d walk into a rather small entryway with a medium-sized kitchen to your left. The kitchen counter stretches from about a foot directly to your left to the opposite wall, creeping much farther down that one to another one. Cabinets line the walls above that. An island is placed on the wood-paneled floor a little uncentered and favoring the wall to your left. An old fridge stands in front of the wall behind the island. Facing back forward you would find a hallway with a longer wall on the right and a shorter one on the left. On your right are three doors: a bedroom, bathroom, and another bedroom. On your left is one door: a Master bedroom. Proceed down this hallway and you’d find yourself in our rather spacious living room, fully furnished with a leather sectional, a couple of recliners, a loveseat, and a TV. Family photos line the walls here. Tucked into the corner is another door. This leads to our laundry room. The only thing the LeBeau family lacked was a large backyard and a pool.
Anna Marie turned right for the kitchen, and I went to the first bedroom on the left. I opened the door quietly and peeked into the neon pink room to find our daughter, Irene, slowly waking up. The seven-year-old shot up at the sight of me, “Daddy!”.
She throws her sheets away from her and runs to me. I pick her up, mid-run, and twirl her in the air before hugging her close to me. Gosh, I’ll never get tired of that.
“Hey ‘dere, p’tite. How was your rest?”
“Awesome! I had a dream that I was flying!”
I watched her eyes, the same red-on-black as mine, sparkle, knowing full well that her dream could come true if she inherited it from her mother.
“Let’s go wake up your brother,” I set her down, grinning happily, and she bolts out of her room, past the bathroom, and waits for me at her little brother’s door. I see Anna Marie watching us out of my peripheral. I hold my finger up to my lips as I reach for Aidon’s doorhandle and turn it slowly. I nod to her once the door is open and she tiptoes in, the kitchen’s light gleaming on her white-and-auburn hair that matches her mother’s. She tiptoes all the way to his bed and persists to tap the five-year-old awake. She presses harder and harder until Aidon finally smacks her hand away and sits up, following his sister to me with a bright smile. He gives me a tight hug, and I tousle his dark auburn hair, hugging him back. He looks out the door to Anna Marie and Irene follows his gaze. They both run into her arms. Every morning is like a grand reunion in our home. There were days when we didn’t know if…no, I force the thought out of my mind, those days are long gone. ‘Long gone,’ I tell myself.
The kids run down the hall to the living room.
“What?” Anna Marie asks me, noticing my absentminded stare down the hall.
“Jus’…thinkin’…” she raised her brow and walked over to me.
“Hey, we’re done with that, remember?”
“Yeah, I know.”
“Then come help me with breakfast, dark eyes.”
I pull out the eggs for her and stick bread in the toaster. I then raise my hands in surrender, claiming I helped. She rolls her eyes at me, but I see the corner of her mouth twitch in a grin. I glance at the clock and swear under my breath, I’m late for work. I say a hurried goodbye to Anna and the kids before heading out the door.
I pulled my old Firebird into Jackie’s Self-Defense Training Center. They were the only company who would hire me considering my being a mutant. That’s where Anna Marie had more luck. Her hair was the only thing that looked…abnormal. And even it could pass for an odd decision in hair dye. Me? Well, I find people don’t really care for my eyes. Nothing I can really do about that though. Jackie interviewed me personally and I learned that his son is actually a mutant, so he had no qualms about hiring me.
I texted Anna Marie letting her know I was there before walking in and closing the door, sunglasses still on. I set my gym bag in my small room. It wasn’t really an “office” per se. More like a mini living room. I switch my jeans out for a pair of sweatpants and my cotton shirt for a breathable one.
“Remy!” Carson, our secretary, calls my name.
“Yeah?” I open my door and meet him in the hallway. He’s waiting with a mom and three kids. A boy of around seven and twin girls who must’ve been nine.
“This is Mrs. Shaina Slate and her kids; Benjamen, Lulu, and Cerise,” Carson gestures to the mom, son, and twins as he speaks.
“Nice t’meet you,” I smile, shaking each of their hands, “My name’s Remy LeBeau.”
Mrs. Slate smiles and turns back to Carson as I pull my sunglasses off.
“Mr. LeBeau is an excellent trainer, I can assure you,” Carson continues.
Mrs. Slate smiles and is about to say something when she turns around and her smile fades, “You’re a…mutant.”
“…Yeah,” I say, my smile disappearing immediately, “’dat a problem?”
She shifted her weight to her other foot, obviously uncomfortable.
“We have a strict ‘no powers’ rule here if that makes you feel any better, Mrs. Slate,” Carson mentions. I know he’s trying to help me but…
“Forget it,” I say, walking back to my room after noticing her continued discomfort.
“Okay, p’tites, one final run around the gym,” I spin my finger around as I walk off the mat to get a drink of water. I then join Niko and Jocelyn, a seven- and eight-year-old, running. The two kids were regulars of mine and their parents, unlike Mrs. Slate, didn’t mind a mutant teaching their children how to defend themselves.
“Go get some water, we done for ‘de day, mes amis,” I gesture them off the mat and the run to their mother, Janine.
“Thank you again, Mr. LaBeau,” she smiles, handing me my payment.
“Anytime, I’ll see y’all around next week,” I smile before I collapse onto my couch in my mini living room. I glance at the clock: 3:15 pm. I’m about to get ready for my final session when my phone rings; I pull it out, “Hello?”
“Remy,” it’s Anna Marie, “ah need you t’meet me at the school. Irene got into a fight.”
I sigh, “I’ll be right there. Is she okay?”
“School says she is. She didn’t start it either.
“Good. See you there. Bye, Chère.”
“Bye, Remy.”
I meet Anna Marie at the entrance of Westchester Ridge Elementary, and we both are silent until we get to the principal’s office.
“You stink,” Anna mutters to me.
“Couldn’t really shower.”
We knock and are promptly let in. As soon as the door opens, Irene came running up to me. I swept her into my arms, frowning at the bruises on her face and arms.
“Hey, Daddy…” she wrapped her arms around my neck and layed her head on my shoulder. “You stink.”
“I know, Bébé, I know,” I kiss her head gently.
“What happened?” Anna demanded of Principal Hoftsman.
“Another student started a fight after they were sent to the busses. He’s been punished accordingly.”
A surge of protectiveness races through my veins. Anna Marie must’ve noticed because she bid the principal thanks and goodbye while pushing me out of the office.
I peek into Irene’s room that evening after dinner.
“Hey, sweetheart. Can I come in?”
She grunts from her bed. I walk over and lay down beside her, reaching a hand out to push the hair from her face. She just looked at me and grabbed my hand, as if it were a lifeline.
“Wanna talk about what happened at school today, Irene?”
“Jacob…he was…m-making fun of my e-eyes.”
My heart breaks for her as I’m swept into my past, the other kids of the Thieves’ Guild beating me up and making fun of me just because I was a mutant. Because of what made the fact obvious.
I’m yanked back to reality when she asks me, “Why do we have such weird eyes, daddy?”
“Ain’t nothin’ wrong wit’ you, Bébé. Maybe we not ‘de ones wit’ weird eyes, non?” I start, “Maybe ‘dey are ‘de ones who are weird. What if ‘dis whole planet had eyes like ours but ‘dese other-eyed people took over, and you and I are the last of our kind?”
She laughed slightly and hugged me. I knew my story was ridiculous, but I couldn’t tell her that she was a mutant. She’s seven for crying out loud. She and Aidon didn’t even know about Anna and I or our pasts with the X-Men. They knew them and had met them. But as far as they knew, we were just friends, not old teammates.
I kiss her head before saying goodnight and turning off the lights, shutting the door on my way out.