Note: I'm sorry this part took so long to get finished. I've been unbelievably logged down with school. Anyway, thanks for waiting. Here's part 10.
There is some language in this part.
By Loup-Garou
Part Ten
Remy paced the living room. Less than an hour ago, Colette (or Rogue as she preferred to be called) had shown up on his doorstep almost in tears. Normally, Remy would have been amazed at how quickly she'd come back but this wasn't a normal situation. "So let me get dis straight. Y'were at de arcade t'pick up Kitty's purse an' Jubilee was playin' a video game, right?"
"Yeah, all of a sudden the coin master person came up an' arrested her, yellin' about rights an' the F.B.I. Before Ah could do anythin' she was handcuffed an' bein' dragged outta the arcade," Rogue said. She was still concerned but now she was incredibly angry.
"D'accord. Did y'hear Jubilee say anyt'ing?" Remy demanded his eyes glowing.
Rogue stood up and blocked Remy's path. "No Ah didn't but Ah've got a danm good idea that this is all your fault Mr. Lebeau! Jubilee was a good kid before you an' your guild came inta her life! It's your fault she was arrested!!!" she exclaimed, her hand forming into a tight fist.
"My fault!?!?! I wasn't de one who didn't try t'stop de F.B.I. agent!" Remy yelled, his fist beginning to glow and causing the card he was fiddling with to glow as well.
Lapin looked from one to the other. "Shouldn't we be tryin' t'get her out, an' not fightin' each other?" he asked stepping between the two of them just as Rogue moved to punch Remy and Remy released the card. "Oh merde!" Lapin muttered as he feel to the ground. The charged card missed him but unfortunately Rogue's fist nailed him in the stomach.
"Oh mah Gawd! Ah'm so sorry!" Rogue exclaimed bending down to see if Lapin was alright.
"Yeah," he moaned. After a few minutes and a lot of sympathy from Rogue and Remy, Lapin slowly got back to his feet. "What are y'goin' t'do?"
Remy looked thoughtfull for a moment. "Dat's simple Lapin, we're goin' t'rescue Jubilee."
****
"I didn't do anything!" Jubilee exclaimed helplessly as two F.B.I. agents dragged her inside a small cell. "I DO have rights you know!"
The taller of the two closed the door behind himself. Jubilee looekd frantically around. Her gaze stopped on the two way mirror spanning the wall across from her. As she tried futilly to figure out what was going on, she suddenly felt her powers drain away. Damn it! They turned off my powers!!! I'm going to die!!!!!!!!!
"Alright Miss Lee," the agent who'd arrested her said calmly. "What do you know about the Theives Guild?"
Jubilee looked at him. "The what?" Oh shit! I'm going to kill Kitty!!
"Don't play dumb with us Lee! We know that you know about them!" the taller agent excalimed. He bagane to pace and toss his gun from one hand to the other.
"I don't know what or who you are talking about!" Jubilee lied as her eyes went wide.
The tall agent looked at her. "Than what were you talking about in the arcade?" he came over to her and loomed meanicingly.
Jubilee looked at him and her mind opened to a time she remembered only in her dreams.
****
Jubilee sat happily on the carpet playing with Lego while her father and his friend Mr. Lebeau discussed something over coffee. Mr. Lebeau had been coming to visit them a lot ever since her grnadfather had died and her father had gotten really sick right after the funeral.
"So, Richard, what are y'goin' t'do if Marcus talks t'de Feds?" Jean-Luc asked. To Jubilee, all these questions Jean-Luc always asked her father seemed like a test from school.
Jubilee looked at the older man. "What's a Fed?" she asked with a childlike innocence that Jean-Luc had not seen in a very long time.
He smiled kindly at her. "A Fed is a bad person, 'tite," he explained.
"Oh," she replied as she pondered that. "And I'm NOT LITTLE!" she finished satisfied with the answer.
"Alright, y'aren't little," he said turning his attentiion back to her father. "So what'd y'do?"
Her father's smiling face turned serious. "He won't tell because he was trained as a full Guild member and nothing the Feds do to him could compare to what he went through to get into the Guild."
Jean-Luc nodded pleased at the man's answer. "Good."
****
Jubilee snapped back to reality when the shorter F.B.I. agent began shaking her. He was right... Jean-Luc was right about Feds being bad people... Tears were running down her face. "I don't know!" she lied playing a scared teenager and using her tears to her advantage. "Why are you harrassing me?!?!?"
The two agents looked at her and then at one another. Through some silent form of communication they two of them turned and left the room. They closed the door behind them leaving Jubilee alone to get over the tears of the past.
Jubilee watched them leave and tried to figure out who was behind the mirror. Alright,think! You'll get out of this somehow. Right?
****
Meanwhile while all this was going on, Kitty was getting ready for her first lesson. Unfortunately she was more upset at Jean-Luc for letting Jubilee get really arrested. As she got her gear together she tried to practice various medidation techniquest to focus her mind on the night ahead. "Damn you, Jean-Luc," she muttered under her breath.
Finally, she was able to get her mind slightly more focused. She grabbed her pack and left her room. As she was going down the stairs Scott came up. "Kitty, hav eyou seen Jubilee or Rogue? They missed their training this afternoon," he asked sounding almost concerned.
Kitty quickly hid her shock. "They mentioned something about going shopping this morning. You know how Jube is at malls..." she said telling only a half lie. "Anyway, if I see them I'll let them know you're looking for them Scott. I've got to run. " Briskly she waved bye to Scott and jogged down the stairs and out to the garage.
She flopped down in the driver's seat of her black Volkswagon Turbo and set her bag down on the floor of the passenger side. "Great! This is just wonderful1 Com on Pryde, focus!" she muttered to herself.
"Somet'ing wrong Kitty?" a voice asked from the back seat.
Kitty drew in a breath to hide her surprize. "Yes, but how did you get in here?" she hissed, slowly backing out of the garage. She turned the radio on to her favorite station and tried to get her focus back and calm her mind. After a few minutes along the deserted road heading into town Kitty pulled over. The shadows from the trees boardering the road seemed to dance along the roof of the car in synch with the music. Kitty turned off the engine and phased throught the car door, too upset to bother opening it.
She was aware of Jean-Luc getting out of the car and sitting down besider her on the hood of the car. "What's eatin' y'?" he asked.
Kitty fought off the approaching tears. "I hate you!" she blurted out angerly. "You lying son of a ..." she trailed off as she realized to who she'd just said that to. Humbly she lowered her eyes to the ground, her tears now beyond control. "Forgive me master, I did not..."
"S'alright dis time 'tite. Now why d'y'hate me so much?" Jean-Luc interpted, lifting Kitty's chin forcing her to look at him.
"You told me you would take care of this and hire an acotr to arrest Jubilee. You never told me that this actor wouldn't really be an actor," Kitty said as she re-watched in her mind the sceen that had occurred earlier that day. She had seen the whole thing happen from behind an arcade game. "The 'so-called' F.B.I. agent actually arrested her. Nobody has heard from her since."
Jean-Luc paled slightly. "I did get an actor. I got one o' de Guild t'play de role. He was under instructions t'call y'when he'd 'arrested' your friend."
Just as Kitty was about to reply, Jean-Luc's cell phone rang. "Bonjour?"
"Bonjour Jean-Luc. C'est moi André."
"What is it?" Jean-Luc demanded unusually impatient.
André cleared his throat on the other end. "Well, we just found Pierre's body. From what we can tell de Assassins are responsible for killin' him."
"D'accord. Merci," Jean-Luc said softly. Merde. Dat means de Assassins have Jubilee... He put away his phone and looked at his young apprentice. "Kitty, I'm goin' t'have t'cancel your tranin' tonight."
"What? Why? Does it have to do with Jubilee?" Kitty exclaimed jumping off the car.
Jean-Luc stood up and started walking back toward the manor. Kitty ran after him. He slowed down and looke at her. "Don't worry about it. Somethin' just came up dat I have t'deal with.," he explained. "Go home, I'll be in touch."
Kitty nodded, realizing that there was nothing else she could do. Jean-Luc turned and walked away, letting Kitty know that she was dismissed. Sighing, she headed back to her car. Go home? Go home my ass. If Jean-Luc won't help me save Jubilee mabye his son will.
****
Jubilee turned her head at the sound of the door opening. It had been at least an hour since the two agents had left but try as she might, Jubilee had been unable to escape.
Four people clad in weird purple and black masks came into the room. Before Jubilee could even make a move one of them came and handcuffed her wrists behind the chair.
"I guess this means you guys haven't realized that I haven't done anything?" she asked hopefully.
One of the figures stepped up to her. He was average height but to Jubilee's dismay he was incredibly well built and had a sword on his back. "Who is Remy Lebeau?" he asked.
Jubilee hid her supriae, with fear. She'd never ever mentioned anything about Remy to the Feds. "Who?" she asked. "Some French dude?"
"Don't lie t'me," he said as his fist went into her stomach.
"Oooff," was all she said as the air went out of her and she doubled over in pain. "Who are you?" Jubilee gasped out.
"Your worst nightmares if y'don't tell us what we want t'know."
The leader of the four stepped up behind Jubilee and pushed her head forward. "She's still jus' an apprentice," he said in a gruff voice.
Suddenly he yanked her head up by her hair. "What do y'know o'de Thieves' Guild?" he demanded coldly.
"Nothing! I don't know who you're talking about!" Jubilee pleaded, lying to the best of her abilities. Who are these people? What do they want with me?
The first figure put a knife to her exposed throat. "Just tell us what we want t'know."
Jubilee started crying again. "I don't know!" she exclaimed, terrifeid and her mind going numb. Her body began acting on instincts icked the figue in front of her. The figue behind her yanked her head back farther.
The figure in front of her struck her with the knife. "Stop wit'de games Miss Lee."
Jubilee's head fell forward as the other guy dropped her hair. "Please..." she begged.
One of them punched her hard in the ribs. Jubilee moaned as she heard a couple cracks. "How are y'invovled in de Guilds?"
Jubilee lifted her head slowly and looked the masked man in the eyes. She noticed a detachment in his eyes while he noticed pure sincere terror and pleading in hers. "There's more than one?" she asked turning even more pale.
The leader stepped forward. "Just answer de question!" he ordered slapping her hard.
Jubilee swallowed and thought that she tasted blood while trying to hide fear. "Ow, that's going to bruise!" She looked at his eyes, and unlike the other guy, his were cold and out to complete a job. She tried to look thoughtful. "Are you guys French or something?"
In response, the leader sliced her other cheek. Very quickly Jubilee lost the last of her never. I want to go home! They're going to kill me! "Please stop," she whipered as she fought off tears.
"We will when y'tell us what y'know." The four figures stepped closer, forming a tight circle around her. "We know dat y'know 'bout de Guilds, how are y'involved?" One of them grabbed her left arm at the shoulder and applied just enough pressure to hurt.
"I'm not!" Jubilee yelped helplessly.
"I'll ask y'again, how are y'involved?"
Jubilee's eyes went wide as the figure pu more pressure on her arm. "What do you want?"
The figure pulled and dislocated her shoulder. Jubilee screamed and then as the pain slowly hit her brain she slowly began to drift back through her memories.
***
"Mommy..." Jubilee said sitting at the kitchen table. Once again Mr. Lebeau and her father were discussing business in the living room again. "Why don't you like Mr. Lebeau?"
Jubilee's mother stopped drying the dished and came and sat down next to Jubilee. "Why do you think I don't like him?" she asked quietly. Before Jubilee could reply, her mother took her by the hand and led her outside.
Jubilee sat down and looked at her mother. "Well... you always leave when he comes over, and you try to stay away from him and you barely talk to him and you never smile when he's mentioned and he's never mentioned when he's not here. Why?" Jubilee asked in one big long breath.
"You see a lot for someone your age Jubilee," her mother smiled gently and almost sadly. "If Jean-Luc knew what I was, your father would be looked badly on and I would probably be killed."
"Why?" Jubilee asked innocently.
Her mother sighed and took a chain out from her pocket. "You see this symbol Jubilee," she asked showing her daughter a gold ring on the chain.
Jubilee scrambled up and studied the pretty and odd shaped 'A' symbol. It also looked like a pair of swords maybe. "Pretty."
"This is a symbol of a group of people that don't get along with another group of people. Your gather and Mr. Lebeau belong to this other group of people," he mother explained with a furitive glance towards the house.
Jubilee was confused. "I don't get it! If you and Daddy aren't supposed to get along why do you?"
Her mother gave her a tight squeeze. "We fell love. Your father is a very powerful person in his group but I am not that powerful, in my group. We got married in secret and promised each other tha we would move away and leave our groups. Unfortunately your father couldn't leave without being hunted so we had to stay."
"Oh I see. So this is a secret. I won't tell anybody. Promise!" Jubilee said jmping down to go and play.
***
It was late out but Rogue, Lapin and Remy were still hard at work. Every few minutes a Guild member would come in speak in hushed tones to Remy.
Finally after one of these reports Remy jumped up and grabbed Rogue. "C'mon! Dey found out where Jubilee is bein' held!"
"What?!? Where?" Rogue exclaimed jumping up.
"Remy grinned solomnly "You'll see we're goin' t'get her out an' you're comin'."
Lapin looked at his cousin. "Quoi? Est-ce-que ça c'est une bonne idée?" he asked.
"I don' know but I don' want t'lose her again!" Remy explained hurridly.
"Excuse me?!?! What do ya think Ah am? A piece o' property?" Rogue demanded heatidly.
Remy just glared at her and sat down at his computer and began typing away. A few minutes later he pushed the print button and leaned back in his chair. "Okay, here's de plan..."
***
Kitty slowed down as she approached the huge house she was supposed to be living in. After praking her car in the large driveway, Kitty rumaged around in her purse to find the key Remy had given her. "Okay, this works," she muttered getting out of the car.
Quickly she opened the door and stepped inside. Antoinette stiffled a stratled gasp when she say Kitty. "What are y'doin' back? I thought dat y'an de others had left," she asked.
"I need to talk with Remy. Is he here?" Kitty replied anziously.
"Non, y'just missed him. He an' your friend left about a half-hour ago," Antoinette explained as she went back to her dusting.
"Oh. Did they say where they were headed?"
Antoinette looked at the younger girl. "Non, y'could just wait for dem t'get back."
Kitty nodded and wandered into the study to see what she could figure out from his papers.
***
Jubilee came to, a couple of hours later. "Huh? What?" she mumbled the room slowly came into focus. "Oh, I wasn't dreaming," she muttered as she noticed several more masked figures.
"Non, y'arent' dreamin'," a voice said. "But y'could be for a long time if y'don't tell us what we want t'know."
Jubilee winced as she tried to turn and face her opponent. "What was that exactly?"
The masked figure punched her. "Y'aren't normal teenager Miss Lee, so quit tryin' ti'lie t'us."
Jubilee lifted her head, as she felt the power inhibitor lift. Before she could act, something else hit her. "Noooo!!" she screamed, her eyes going wide from some unseen fear.
Suddenly the nightmare stopped. Jubilee looked around, panic and fear in her eyes, her face as pale as a sheet. Shaking, she took in a breath. "What happened?" she asked quietly like a small child.
Another person that had been watching quietly from the background stepped into the light. He watched as his companions continued to interrogate Jubilee. All at once he recognized her face.
Jubilee doubled over and was about to black out as another fist was coming towards her, her mind was being tormented by unseen nightmares. "Please," she moaned, appealing to anyone who would listen.
Her only response was laughter. As she watched a huge demon loomed over her. "What do y'know about de Guilds?" it demanded, red eyes glowing.
Jubilee tried to clear her head of the nightmares. She knew that they weren't real, one of them was just using mutant power on her. She felt her knee shatter as the demon or Assassin broke her kneecap. She opened her mouth to speak but the world was spinning.
***
Jubilee had seen the car pull up the driveway. Quickly she scrambled down her huge apple tree and ran to the front of the house. A skinny man with blue eyes and red-brown hair stepped out of the black porche. He saw Jubilee and smiled. "Bonjour, 'tite," he said handing a red lolli-pop.
"Hi. I'm Jubilee," she replied grabbing the lollipop. "Who are you?"
"I'm Jean-Luc's son. Is your papa home?"
"Yup," Jubilee said, around the lollipop in her mouth. She ran ahead to get her father. She sat on the floor as the two talked. Quietly she watched as a slight amount of fear showed on her father's face. "Daddy, what's wrong?" she asked.
He looked at her and smiled gently. "Nothing. Why don't you go play outside Jubilee?" She nodded and ran outside.
Instead of going outside though, Jubilee hid around the corner and listened.
"We have just received news that the Assassins are killing off our people her in L.A.," he father said.
"Oh. D'y'need de help o'de New Orleans Guild?"
Her father shook his. "No, not yet. I want to keep New Orleans out of this for now. That last thing we need is full scale war. Just promise me one thing Remy."
"Hm?" the man asked.
"Promise me that you will take care of my wife and daughter if anything should happen to me..."
Remy closed his eyes, for a moment. "I promise. Don' worry. Nothin' will happen t'you."
Jubilee ran out to her tree after that and cried. What is Daddy talking about? A couple hours later she heard her mother calling.
"Jubilee, your uncle is here!"
Quickly pushing her fears aside for a bit, scramble down the tree and into the house.
***
Kitty parked her car around the corner of a huge deserted warehouse. "There we go. Now all I need to do is get inside." Silently she slipped out of her car and into the building.
As her eyes adjusted to the darkness she noticed two people guarding the door. Oh crap! Assassin Guild members! Okay let's assume they have two guards per door which means there are probably eight to ten guards watching the outside doors. Kitty phased through some packing crates behind the guards.
Her eyes scanned the warehouse. After a couple of minutes she noticed a doorway, leading to another part of the warehouse. Two people in suits with swords and maskes were guarding the door. Okay. Let's go the longway...
Kitty snuck behind them and stepped through the wall. She dropped a bit. Shit! Stairs? Where do these go? Shadowcat went tangeble abnd started following the stairs down.
At the bottom of the stairs Kitty heard Jubilee down the hallway. Quickly she broke into a run. "Hang on Jube!" she prayed.
Jubilee looked up at the figure watching her. Despite her swollen eyes, throbbing head and extreme sleepiness she thought she recognized his eyes. "Do I know you?" her words slurred probably from a broken jaw.
He raised his hand and everybody stopped. "You do Jubilee," he said in Chinese. "I wondered how long it would take you."
Jubilee drew in a shallow breath. "Oh my god," she gasped letting out her breath.
He pulled oh his mask with a nod from his leader. "Little Jubilee, you don't have to fear anymore," he said soothingly in Chinese as he bent down besider her and brushed a wisp of hair out of her eyes. "Your uncle will take care of you."
Jubilee swallowed. "What do you want?" she asked in Chinese. All of a sudden a realization hit her and all her bottled up hatred, anger and fear came flowing to the surface.
Just as her uncle was about to reply Kitty slipped into the room. "Kitty! No!" Jubilee exclaimed hoarsely.
Before Kitty knew it she was somehow tangeable. As much as she tried to return to her natural, phased state she couldn't. "Jubilee! Are you oker?" she asked just as every Assassin in the room trained their guns on her.
Jubilee's uncle looked at her. "Now, Jubilee, why don't you tell us what you know?" he questioned, his eyes turning cold and cruel.
Kitty's eyes were wide with fear but she shook her head slightly. "Don't do it!" she burst out.
Jubilee looked at her best friend and partener. Without a secong thought, she spoke. "I'll talk. Just let her go."
The leader nodded. Jubilee's uncle raised his gun and fired. "There, now she's free forever," he laughed.
"No!" Jubilee cried out as she fired a plasma mine at the leader behind her. "You asshole!You killed my parents! I hate you!" she spat in Chinese at her mother's brother.
He just laughed evily. "It's all about survival and honoring your family, little one," he replied. "Obviously, you have not learned that yet."
Just as Jubilee was about to black out again, Remy, Rogue and six other people burst into the room. Jubilee looked at Kitty's dead body and began to sob. "He killed her. He shot her... He shot them," she muttered in shock.
Remy quickly took care of all the Assassing except for Jubilee's uncle. Rogue bent over Kitty just to double check. She looked up sorrowfully. "She dead." Slowly, she stood up as anger filled her entire being. Rogue noticed Jubilee's uncle and cornered him angerly. She pulled off her gloves. "What the hell happened? What did ya do ta Shadowcat?" she demanded.
"What does it look like?" he smirked drawing his sword. Rogue moved in closer and grasped his face in her hands. After a minute, she had all the information that she needed. Her tears flowed as he collapsed.
"Asshole," she muttered, kicking his fallen body and pulling on her gloves.
Remy meanwhile, untied Jubilee. "S'okay 'tite. S'over now," he said gently.
Jubilee looked at him blankly. "You promised," she said sobbing. "Why did you break your promise?" she asked softly as her world started to go dark.
"Hey stay wit' me Jubilee," Remy said puzzled by her comment. "Let's get y'home." He gently picked her up and looked at Rogue. Rogue nodded mutely in shock at what she was seeing and picked up Kitty's limp body. She silently followed Remy outside, trying not to look at the bloodsplattered walls.
"Love is having somebody to nudge when you see something you like and want to share it."
--Anonymous
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