Disclaimer: The X-Men and all associated odds and ends belong to Marvel Comics. Jaguar is an original character created by, and belonging to me. Gimme a ring if you’d like to use her in a fic or something, I might be more obliging than you’d expect from first glance. I’m making no money from this, and am engaged in the endeavor only for personal pleasure, as well as that of a few random folk out there in cyberspace. Ya wouldn’t get much of nothing even if you did take everything I’ve got, so it’s really not worth the bother. But feel free, filing bankruptcy has always been a desire of mine…. NOT!

Warning: This story contains details concerning homosexual relationships, and vivid bits of blood, gore, and random other nasty things, not to mention the ‘dirty’ words. If you don’t like any of this stuff, I suggest you go elsewhere.

Timeline: This story takes place somewhere in my own timeline. I quit keeping up with the comics, as I moved away from my source, shortly after the whole Gambit in Antarctica deal. However, I have heard bits and pieces from random individuals, most of which I didn’t like. Thus, I’ve embarked into my own space-time continuum. Don’t intrude, we like it here! But, according to that time, this whole bit occurs sometime shortly after Jaguar is first brought to the X-Mansion. And, I’m sorry for the bit about not explaining in here where she came from, but I’d written another one first that explained it, and I really didn’t feel like writing it out twice. So, you’ll have to read them both if you wanna know where the bloody hell she came from.

"Remy, just shuddup ‘bout it, and let me do this for y’all, huh?"

"Chere, we don’ need dis. We got plenty money ta do dis ourselves."

"I know that, stupid. Look, you guys are the only ones what trusted me as me, instead of taking pity on Wolverine’s daughter. Not even ol’ X would let me stay without his word. It ain’t got nothing to do with the money. I want to do this. Cyclops is the only thing standing in our way, but I’ll talk ta him myself."

Bobby walked up halfway through the exotic mutant’s speech, and wrapped his arms around Gambit from behind, kissing his neck lightly. He would never have the balls to do something like that in front of anybody other than Jaguar. However, he knew he could not keep anything from her, what with the three of them sharing the boathouse now. Besides that, there was just something about her that made him more comfortable in her presence than with anyone else except his lover. Moreover, since she had been the one that actually got them together in the first place, it was just a wee bit pointless to try to hide it.

Gambit shivered slightly with pleasure at the touch of Bobby’s lips. Jaguar found herself unable to suppress the smile over the happiness of her two closest friends. Nor could she suppress the pangs of envy that coursed through her veins everytime she saw them touch. There had only been two people that truly loved her, one of those was dead, and the other had run out of her life some time ago. Not even her own father could profess such love for her. She instinctively realized that his love stemmed from the feelings any male would feel for his offspring; nothing more than a biological attachment to the fruit of his loins. Truth be told, he didn’t even know who she really was.

"So, what’re you two talking about so seriously?" Bobby asked as he moved to stand beside Gambit, so he could join the conversation. What with the Cajun being taller, Iceman could see little more than his lover’s back when standing there.

"I was tryin’ to convince this man of yours to let me treat tha two o’ ya to a coupla weeks at this li’l place I got up in the mountains. Real secluded. Away from everything and everybody. Great lakefront property, pine forest in the backyard. Nearest neighbors’re clear on the other side of the lake. They only use their cabin during the huntin’ season. There won’t be nobody up there for months. Whadaya say, Ice?"

"I say…" Bobby began, leaning closer to Remy, "Cyke’s gonna blow a gasket when we tell him about it, Cat."

"Looks like you ain’t got a choice now, eh Remy? You wouldn’t wanna upset such a sweet little puppy. And, don’t neither of you worry ‘bout fearless leader man. I’ll get that all taken care of. Remember, I’m extraordinarily good at ‘persuading’ people to do things."

Truth be told, Remy couldn’t deny Bobby anything, and he knew it. Nevertheless, the Cajun would die before admitting even this weakness. "Don’ you go makin’ ‘im angry agin, chere. ‘E nearly call de Prof down on ya las’ time. Non. Gambit talk to ‘im. ‘E say no, we find ‘nother time. Neh, mon cher?"

Bobby had seen his chance to finally get some alone time with his new found love, and he wasn’t about to give it up without a fight. He knew that between the three of them, there would be no way Scott could deny them at least a couple of days vacation time. They had been working really hard lately, and even their fearless leader was beginning to show signs of being over-worked. "Nope. I say we go now. Let Jag take care of Scott."

Gambit threw his hands in the air indicating surrender. "Gambit give up. He get nowhere wit’ you two. D’accord, mon amie. We go, but we not leavin’ till day after tomorrow."

"Take me that long to get provisions for you two up there, anyway. Anything special either of you want? I’ll get all the usuals, and throw in a few surprises of my own. Oh, I forgot to mention, there’s no phone up there, and I don’t want either of you even thinking about taking a com unit. Just go and have a good time. You need this time, and I’m gonna make sure you get it." With that, she bounded off with uncharacteristic perkiness to convince Cyclops that the unlikely pair needed time to themselves, and that he would be much happier with their performance once they had gotten that time.

As it turned out, the X-Men’s leader did not require much convincing. Cyclops had been looking for an excuse to take some time off to be with Jean during the last and most difficult, month of her pregnancy. He talked it over with the Professor, and they decided that everyone probably needed a break. Iceman’s estimation that the toils of late had been trying was somewhat understated. Therefore, the X-Men got their first official vacation.

Warren and Betsy jetted off to jolly old England for some time to themselves, and to visit some old friends. Beast and Professor Xavier went to Scotland to visit Moira McTaggert and the rest of her team. Wolverine wanted to do some ‘soul searching’ on his own, but offered Jaguar the chance to come along. She had known what he really wanted, so refused politely. Bishop and Storm took the opportunity to go off by themselves, and choose not to make their plans known to anyone else. Having nothing else to do, Jaguar volunteered to remain on the grounds, make sure everything was safe, and get some extra Danger Room sessions in. Of course, Bobby and Remy were sent directly to Jaguar’s cabin.

Wednesday Evening, At Jaguar’s Cabin in the Proverbial Middle of Nowhere, New York

Bobby and Remy pulled up to Jaguar’s cabin in complete awe. They had both known the woman had amassed a veritable fortune from investments, heists, and the inheritance left by her mother. However, her description of a rustic cabin off in the midst of the woods did not do this place justice. Even after living in Xavier’s mansion for such a long time, and being well-to-do themselves, they weren’t prepared in the least for the ‘rustic cabin’ that greeted them at the end of the dirt road.

Jaguar’s sometime-home rested on the banks of a picturesque lake spanning nearly three acres in the midst of a pine forest cresting a large mountain. It was a two-story, three-bedroom house with highly elaborate furnishings. The den held a rather large video collection comprised of a little something to satisfy any taste, with a theatre sized screen on which to enjoy them. In addition, should one get bored with the movies, Jaguar had installed a satellite dish. To further the entertainment of visitors, the entire place was wired so that the stereo from the den could be heard throughout, even out on the deck, as selected by a control panel. The library was stocked with all the classics, as well as the best selling novels on every list from the past decade. The room itself had a lofty ceiling, comprised over half the floor space of the structure, and was divided into two different levels. The lower level set on the lakeside of the structure and extended out towards the deck. Lining two sides of this level, minus an area near the plate-glass windows for a step down, was a black leather couch which curved around a black marble slab setting atop a large polished oak trunk to serve as a table. The upper level of the den held little more than the entryway, a door leading to the equally massive dining room, which connected to both the library and kitchen, and a spiral staircase leading to a narrow walkway overlooking the entire room. Four large skylights allowed a view of nearly the entire night sky from the comfort of the couch.

Upstairs, each of the three bedrooms had been fully decorated in a different style, and was larger than both Gambit and Bobby’s rooms in the mansion combined. The beds all appeared to be hand-carved, and were clearly custom-sized, as each went beyond doubling king-size. As entrance into each of the bedrooms, there were three individual sitting rooms. Further, each held its own personal bath nearly the same size as the bedchamber itself.

Bobby had been obsessed with checking out the boathouse down on the lake to prove that ‘the Cat really was afraid of water.’ He had been disappointed once they found the proper key. The shack held a sailboat, a speedboat, a set of water skis, and a Jet Ski, all showing signs of much use. And, that didn’t include the variety of rock climbing equipment that was stashed away there as well. Obviously, Jaguar was a woman who liked all forms of entertainment.

Jaguar had accompanied the boys that afternoon to make sure they found the place without any trouble, but had not waited around long enough to even say good-bye to them. She had opened the front door, tossed the keys at Remy, and rode off on her Harley before either of the two men had fully registered that she had gone. Bobby had been a little worried about her, but had not found time to say anything until he was sitting on the deck, Remy’s arms encompassing him, watching the sunset over the lake.

"You think Cat was all right, Remy? She didn’t even take her helmet off, and you know how much she hates that thing."

Remy pulled his lover closer, and murmured in his ear. "She be a’right, Cher. Elle est d’accord. If not, she say somet’ing, neh? We gotta let ‘er be, Bobby. She no’ like dis worryin’ all de time."

Bobby turned to look into Remy’s eyes. "Yeah, but…"

Remy ceased Bobby’s protests with his lips, pulling him into a deep kiss. Instinctively, Bobby reached his hands up to Remy’s. The taller man pulled up from his reclining position to meet his lover more fully. Bobby’s hands worked their way down Remy’s back, slowly massaging the tension that had kept him wound up the past few weeks. For his part, Remy just held Bobby close, never wanting the moment to end. Eventually, the two had to come up for air. But, by that time all thoughts that did not include each other were gone from both of their minds. They moved inside, not wanting to waste a single moment of their all too short time alone together.

Thursday Afternoon, Back At The Mansion:

As her cabin was nearly a full day’s ride from the mansion, Jaguar had stayed at a cheap motel in the little town at the foot of the mountain. She did not arrive back at the mansion until late the next afternoon. The minute she drove through the gates, and caught sight of the house, she knew something was wrong. The reek of cheap cologne mixed with gun oil flooded her senses long before she reached the front door. She caught wind of something else as well - something highly familiar that made her hair stand on end, but she could not quite place it.

Realizing that somebody had set up an ambush, and that there was no way to get out of it easily since they would have noticed her coming up the front drive, Jaguar decided to take a slightly less than fully direct approach to her problem. She tossed her helmet aside, and extended her adamantium claws as she dove through a window to the front room. The man who had unwisely taken up position with his back to the window met a quick, but bloody death when Jaguar came crashing through. She immediately took up a defensive posture directly over the fallen man, and drank in her surroundings. There were five other men there; four of whom she did not recognize and one she knew all too well. "Sabretooth!" she hissed with venom laced ice deepening her voice. "What in Beelzebub’s fucking hell do you want?"

"Well, well, if it isn’t the little kitten. The boys here and I came to have a chat with tha runt about a little unfinished business he and his team have with some old friends of ours, kit. Never counted on finding my ol’ sweetheart here. Ain’t nobody else around to get in the way, so what say you and me have a little talk for old times sake?"

Snarling, Jaguar mentally noted the exact positions of the other men in the room as she locked eyes with her opponent. Her tone was laced with strychnine and honey, and her eyes blazed white-hot. "I forget… how was it you put it when you left. ‘I’ve moved to greener pastures, love. ’ Or, am I misquoting? I’d hate to make you look too bad in front of your obviously loyal soldiers."

Sabretooth chuckled, and moved several steps closer, waving off the other men. He took up a slightly defensive posture, worried that this ‘kitten’ might come out a little more like a bandicoot if he was not careful. "I’ve missed that sense of humor, babe. Yeah, I wuz a bastard. But, ya knew that before, didn’t ya? Let me explain."

Jaguar did not join in his mirth; rather, she crouched lower, and growled menacingly at him through clenched teeth. "If ya know whut’s good for ya, you’ll step back, ya furry bastard. I ain’t ‘xactly decided whether to rip your gut open. Push it, and I’ll go straight for tha gut ‘steada hearin’ ya out. And unless you’ve developed some wonder drug your healing factor don’t negate, you’ll not heal when I cut ya. Ya never did. Now, get rid a’ the audience."

The blood lust written so clearly in her stance and her voice made the giant mutant sober up quickly, and he backed off a step. Sabretooth instructed his men to leave, and closed the door behind them. As the humans left them alone, Jaguar stepped over the dead body, and kicked it aside. She withdrew her claws, and sat on the windowsill but did not drop her guard. She kept her gaze locked on the huge male across from her.

Once the others were out, Sabretooth lowered his voice, and held up his hands to prove he wanted no fight. With Jaguar, he showed sides of himself no one else had ever seen. He was not really the bloodthirsty monster he had always made himself out to be. He had just never found anyone that could understand him, or even attempt to. "I come here lookin’ for a fight, Cat, but not with you. Hadn’t heard nothing ‘bout you in forever. Kinda figured they’d caught up with ya or somethin’. Good to see they didn’t, Jags. I’ve missed ya."

"As I recall, you were tired of hanging around waitin’ for me to get my act together. And yeah, they caught up with me. Woulda killed me if…."

"They caught you?!"

"They sent twenty guys to put one of those goddamn collars on me in my sleep. And, then, among other things, beat the living shit outta me for a week, probably longer. They cut me up like they were tryin’ ta figure out how ta skin me, and dumped me in an alley.

"I wondered the first coupla days how they managed to find me, Creed. Then I figured there ain’t but one person what can find me out. How much ya get for selling me out? I hope to gods y’already enjoyed it, cause ya ain’t getting outta here to use any more of it." She crouched, ready to pounce, flexed her finger claws, and bared her fangs.

"What the hell are you talking about?! I would never sell ya out! You know that! Gods, girl, I l…"

"Don’t gimme that love shit! I’ve heard it one too many times from you, Sabretooth!"

"Jags…"

"AND, DON’T CALL ME JAGS!!!" She lowered her head so she had to look straight up to see him, and lowered her voice. It emerged frighteningly calm, almost a full growl. "Your excuses aren’t going to work on me no more. I heard ‘em all, remember? Now, tell me why, and maybe I’ll make it quick."

Sabretooth stood his ground, despite being obviously worried. "You and I both know there’s only one way you’re going to believe me on this one."

With little more than a look Victor Creed had invited Jaguar to penetrate his mind, and see the truth for herself. But, it was the act alone that convinced her of his innocence. She knew he would never invite anyone into his head unless he was being honest. She relaxed her posture, and looked up to meet his eyes. She cocked her head to one side, and studied him closely. "Why’d you leave? Ya owe me tha truth."

Sighing, the massive man relaxed into the couch he had been standing in front of, and returned Jaguar’s gaze for a moment. "They were getting too close ta me, babe. I caught wind of them in town. Couldn’t let ‘em find ya. You meant too much to me. If I’d known they’d go up that mountain lookin’…" He lowered his head, and covered his face with his hands. Looking up, he locked eyes with her, "I swear to ya, I had no idea they would go up there. That’s why I called to tell ya I was leavin’. Didn’t wanna take the chance they might follow me up there.

"I just figured you’d been up there all this time; hiding on that mountain. I never thought they’d getcha, babe, never in a million years. Figured you were safe long as I didn’t hear nothing. Nobody heard anything bout you bein’ caught. If I’d known…" Again, he lowered his head, this time to hide the tears welling up in his eyes. However, he could not hide them from her, and he knew it. She would smell the salt, hear the catch in his breathing, but he would not let her see them. That would be too much.

Jaguar slid across the floor to kneel at his feet. She took his wrists in her hands, and pulled his hands down. Then, she reached up, and kissed his cheek, drawing her tongue across his face to wipe away the tears.

He gripped her shoulders, and pulled her into a passionate embrace, which she returned with equal fervor. "I shoulda been there for ya. I shoulda…"

Jaguar pulled back, and hushed her long-time flame with a finger against his lips. "Hush now. There’s no need to think about that. Nothing happens that’s not meant to. I’m fine, and we’re together again. What more could you ask for?" She smiled up at him, then kissed him chastely, almost demurely. He chuckled at her, and she pulled back again. "Laughing?"

Again, he laughed, and pulled her closer. "At you. You ain’t gone soft on me, have you?"

She rolled her eyes, and kissed him again. This time there was much more behind it. Their tongues met in fervored passion. Their minds joined at a thought in a link formed years ago by a meddling psychic, and they were sharing each other’s pleasure. They knew exactly where, and how to touch. What started as the tense reunion of two potential enemies, rekindled a fire each had thought burnt out long ago. She lay back, and pulled him down with her. Flexing her claws again, she ran them down the length of his back, ripping his shirt.

He hissed when she dug a little too deeply. "Watch it, will ya? Still got scars from tha last time ya did that."

Jaguar shut off his protests solidly with her tongue, and ripped off the remainder of his shirt. "Sorry, love, I’ll try to contain myself. Wouldn’t wanna scar such pretty flesh." Seductively, she sucked his blood from her finger. "I’d forgotten how good you taste."

Creed sat back on his haunches, and chuckled at her. Then, flexing his own claws, he growled, "Now it’s my turn!" He raised his arm, set to slash her clothes, when he was knocked over backwards by a thoroughly pissed Wolverine. Minds still connected, Jaguar’s mental recognition of her father trickled through to Sabretooth. He flipped the smaller man off him, and stood ready to attack, laughing. "Father, eh? Knowing ya left her ta be a bastard’s gonna make killin’ ya even sweeter, runt!"

"Quite your talkin’, bub! Fight!" The two lunged towards each other simultaneously; claws extended and ready for the kill. Neither of them connected with their expected prey.

Without thinking, Jaguar leaped between her lover and her father moments before they collided. "N…!" Her cry cut off as two sets of claws ripped through her lungs from opposite directions. Neither man had time to pull their strikes, nor were they known to make non-lethal wounds when engaged with one another. The wounded mutant slumped to the ground, coughing blood, but healing quickly. Sabretooth dropped to his knees beside his fallen love, and gathered her in his arms in the moment it took Wolverine to retract his claws. When he saw his ‘little girl’ in his worst enemy’s arms, he nearly went mad with rage, and started to attack again. Jaguar successfully stopped either man from doing anything else, with a slightly weak, yet irrefutable, "Stop!" Relaxing more fully into Sabretooth’s grip as the last traces of her wounds disappeared from sight, she looked up at her father. "Will you please just stop? Think about…"

"I ain’t gotta think ‘bout nothing. He was about ta rip you open."

"Would you just shut up?! Look around. Does it look like we’re fighting? Take a good whiff of the air, Father-dear. Damn pheromones are almost chokin’ me, ain’t no way you could miss them. Care to explain how you got aggression out of anything in here?"

Silently, Sabretooth chuckled at the look on Wolverine’s face as he calmed down enough to fully take in the scene around him, and realize what his daughter and mortal enemy had been doing when he leaped through the window. The younger man had always found it hard to stay angry at anything when around Jaguar. Even the age-old animosity between Wolverine and himself was not enough to break the joy she brought to his heart. Only with her could he escape the animal nature that had driven him to so many unthinkable acts.

Jaguar smiled as Sabretooth’s laughter filled her head. She quickly dampered their link not needing the distraction while she tried to calm her father. She knew her lover would be fine, no matter what happened, but she needed to rectify whatever anger lie between these two men. The sudden absence startled Sabretooth a bit, and he looked down at her questioningly. She smiled, then pulled herself out of his arms, planting a quick kiss on his cheek in reassurance and stood to face her father. He stood behind her, wisely choosing not to make any physical contact with her. "Say it. Whatever it is that’s running through that head of yours, Old Man, just go ahead and say it."

Wolverine carefully modulated his tone, "Get ‘im outta here before I rip out his tongue, and feed it to him for dinner."

Unable to resist the bait, Sabretooth answered, "Ya really think ya can, runt? Heard lotsa big talk outta ya all these years. And, I’ve yet ta see ya live up t’ it. Seems to me you’re all talk. Come on! Show me what ya really got."

Cutting off the reply of the smaller man, Jaguar turned to face Sabretooth. Shifting closer, she looked up into his eyes, and spoke directly to his mind. <Do me a favor, Tiger? >

He took her hand in his, and briefly looked up when Wolverine growled. <I ain’t leavin ya in here for him to hurt. I know what he can do. >

Sabretooth wrapped her arms behind her back, and roughly pulled her close to him. She caught scent of his arousal, and felt the physical manifestation of it against her hip. <That a promise, Kitten? >

She gently wrestled her hands from his massive paws, and wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him into a passionate kiss. Behind them, Wolverine fought hard against his instinct to rip them apart, and pull the offending male’s head off. <Promise. Now, go! >

Reluctantly, he let her go, and moved towards the door. Just before closing the door behind him, Sabretooth shot a glance saying ‘Be careful’.

Saturday Morning, At The Cabin:

The first couple of days had seen both Remy and Bobby lose every ounce of tension that normally consumed the life of an X-Man. They spent every possible moment in each other’s arms. Clothing was something that neither of them thought very much of here in their seclusion, and they rarely went beyond a hastily donned pair of shorts. The light of day had only touched their pale skin through panes of glass, and the lights in the house were hardly turned on. They had enjoyed their time immensely, and could not have asked for a better setting. In fact, they both doubted they could have had a better time even had they actually planned the vacation themselves.

Now that the two had returned to a fully relaxed state, they wanted to explore their surroundings. But, that would wait one more day, anyway. It had rained the night before, and neither was interested in getting dripped on by the trees, or walking in the mud. Bobby had pulled a random movie from Jaguar’s vast library, and popped it into the VCR. The two were couched out on the massive sofa, wrapped around one another. As it turned out, the film was uninteresting, and neither man could get involved. Remy, head resting on Bobby’s chest, had lapsed into a semiconscious state some time earlier, lulled by the gentle pattern of his lover’s breathing.

Bobby was absently running his fingers through Remy’s long auburn locks. After all the girlfriends he had had, he had begun to believe he would never be happy. But now, he could not imagine his life any other way. It had been a long time since his mind had had such peace. He hoped the same was true for Remy, but was too afraid that he might get the wrong answer, so he had not asked. Instead, he just drowned himself in the moment, allowing his every pore to be immersed in the Cajun who had finally opened the door to his soul. He shifted slightly, bending his head to gently kiss Remy’s cheek, finally getting the courage to ask. "Remy?" he whispered.

Lazily the Cajun responded, "Hmmm?"

"Are you…. I mean…. I was just wonderin’…."

"Quoi?"

"Well…. Um…. I just wondered if you were happy. I mean… well… I am, and …I…uh… was just hoping that you were. Cause if you aren’t…."

Remy raised up on one elbow so he was looking directly into Bobby’s eyes. "Shhh. It’s okay, mon amour. Oui, Remy ‘appy." He kissed Bobby lightly, and settled back into his earlier position, holding him just a little tighter in reassurance.

Bobby lay still only a few moments before disturbing the relative silence once again. "Remy…I…I love you."

Remy smiled, and ran his hands up Bobby’s sides, causing the younger man to shiver slightly. "Oui. Je le sais, mon bichou. Je t’aime, aussi." Softly, he began lavishing kisses over the bare chest and neck beneath him, all the while becoming more urgent with his stroking hands.

Bobby’s hands moved to Remy’s hair, then down his back. He shivered suddenly when Remy found that now familiar spot in the hollow of his neck, and began lapping sweetly at his skin. It took several moments for the fact that his lover had responded in French to settle into the younger man’s brain, and several more seconds to remember that he did not speak French. When all this finally did sink in, he found himself incapable of questioning with more than a guttural noise. "Huh?"

Remy sighed, still finding it hard to believe that in all of the other man’s vast education, nobody had taught him any French. The Cajun only paused to translate the important part. "I love you." And, add an even more significant sentiment. "I always will, Bobby, wit’ all my heart."

The urgency in Bobby’s touch suddenly disappeared, and he became very still. Remy looked up to see that he was crying. Brushing the tears away, Remy sought their source. " ‘Ere now. Wat’s dis? You no’ ‘appy? Gambit sorry. He not mean ta hurt you, Bobby. Tell me, wat I do?"

"Gods, no, Remy. You didn’t hurt me. You couldn’t have made me happier if you’d tried." He pulled his partner into a passionate kiss. When they parted lips, the two just lay there basking in each other’s body heat for nearly an hour.

This time, it was Remy who broke the silence between them. "Bobby?"

"Yeah?"

"You guilty as Gambit, ‘bout leavin’ Jaguar ‘lone back at de mansion?"

"Yeah."

"Den what say we go drag ‘er ta join us for two or t’ree days? We had our fun, non?"

"Sounds good to me. Though, we should probably put some clothes on first."

Saturday Evening, At the Mansion:

The ride had taken longer than either man expected, and Bobby’s legs and backside were completely numb. Remy reclined against his Hog, casually smoking a cigarette while Bobby worked the out the pins and needles, and got what little coordination he possessed back. Finally, the two walked arm-in-arm up to the front door. Oddly enough, they found the front door locked, and, of course, neither man had their key with them. They assumed Jaguar was on the premises somewhere as her own Harley was parked in the garage. Bobby rang the bell, and hoped their friend would appear to let them in soon.

While they waited for Jaguar, Remy pulled Bobby closer and initiated a fevered round of passionate kissing. Neither of them noticed when the door opened, and Wolverine stood watching in amusement as the two wrestled with their passion. " ‘M I gonna have ta hose you two off ta get ya inside?" He finally grunted.

Bobby pulled back in sudden embarrassment at being caught draping himself all over Gambit, and blushed from head to toe like a guilty teenager. Remy just smiled and let Bobby continue his fumbling. "T’ought you were ou’ huntin’ for de week, mon ami."

"Got back coupla days ago. Small pickins this year, and I felt bad ‘bout leavin’ the kid here."

"You too? I never expected Scott to let all the X-Men go and leave her here alone. I felt really bad about it, but she refused to let us stay. And, she never even gave us the chance to ask her to stay up there with us."

Wolverine grunted, and moved aside as the two men entered the mansion, and he shut the door behind them. "Yeah, well ya ought not feel too bad. She wasn’t quite as alone as we all thought she’d be."

"She no’ say anyt’ing to Gambit bout any of de other X-Men stayin’."

"Wasn’t an X-Men, Cajun. I’ll let you talk ta her ‘bout it. I done had my round over this. Just watch yourselves. Come ta think about it, I guess I oughta warn…" Just then his nostrils flared slightly as he caught wind of something coming up the hallway, and he changed his tune altogether, chuckling slightly. "Then again, might be fun watching her go off on somebody other than me for a change."

Sabretooth walked into the room, carrying a bloody T-shirt in one hand, coated in a thick layer of sweat, and breathing heavily. Blood was streaked all over his body, and colored his hands a bright red. His mouth was open, ready to say something, until he caught sight of Bobby and Remy. The two smaller mutants did not give him any time to react. Remy drew his cards, and charged them as Bobby covered the massive mutant in a thick layer of ice. Logan just shook his head, as he heard his daughter’s impatient sigh emerge from the hallway behind his once greatest enemy.

"I thought you were gonna talk to them." Jaguar circled around to the front of the iceberg named Sabretooth. She was similarly coated in blood, minus the heavy breathing and sweat, but missing the T-shirt she usually slipped on after a workout. With a nearly silent ‘schitz’ she extended the adamantium claws on her right hand, and started to slice through the ice. "Hold on, Tiger. Have ya outta there in a…" Her head moved slightly as he spoke to her through their link. The next second, she threw her hands up, "Fine, ya bull-headed ass. Freeze it off in there, see if I care. But, I ain’t touchin’ ya till you’re warm again."

Logan leaned up against the wall, and addressed her earlier accusation. "Didn’t have time ta tell ‘em. He come rushing in here before I got the chance. You were s’posed ta keep him in tha Danger Room a couple more hours."

Laughing, Jaguar moved as the ice started to crack from the inside. "Yeah, well, I’m sure if he weren’t otherwise occupied at the moment, he’d remind you that not even you can last more than four hours head-to-head with me. He gave me a real run for my money, though."

Just then Sabretooth finally managed to break his way through the ice, and with a slightly noticeable chattering of his teeth spoke, "She’s right, ol’ man. ‘Course, I’d also remind ya I just pulled five hours with her."

Bobby and Remy stood stock-still, entirely nonplussed the exchange before them. Finally, Remy had had enough. He tossed a charged card into the air, where it exploded loudly. Jaguar, Wolverine, and Sabretooth all grabbed their ears at the sudden offense to their sensitive eardrums.

"Jeezus, Remy!" Jaguar growled menacingly in his direction. "What ya tryin’ ta do? Send us all deaf? What the hell are you two…?"

"Firme ta bouche! Gambit wan’ know what be goin’ on ‘ere! Where all de blood from, and why you two in de Danger Room?"

Bobby finally found his own tongue, and joined in the questioning. "And, would somebody please explain why Sabretooth is here, and Logan’s not trying to kill him?"

"Look, guys, I’m gonna go get this shit offa me. Dad’ll explain what he can while Vic and I are cleaning up. We’ll be down in a minute." On her way up the stairs, Jaguar planted a quick kiss on Wolverine’s cheek, and said thanks. Then, she dragged Sabretooth behind her, and the two disappeared just as swiftly as they had appeared.

"Dammit!" Logan grumbled. "I knew she’d stick me with this one way or the other."

"Gambit gettin’ a headache."

Bobby wrapped his arm around Remy’s waist in sympathy. "You’re not the only one, Remy. What’s going on, Wolverine? Just tell me what I think I just saw was all a mirage."

"Oui, dat explain it. It be a mirage, non?"

"Wish I could say it was, Cajun, but it ain’t. You saw just whut ya think ya saw. Come on, I need a beer."

By the time the trio reached the kitchen, Wolverine had finished telling Bobby and Remy how he had happened upon Jaguar and Sabretooth that first day. He dug in the refrigerator for the beers, Bobby plopped into a chair, and Gambit leaned against the door facing heavily. When Logan turned back around he finished the story with details of what had happened since that day, as he tossed a beer to each of the other two men. "Anyway, the kid didn’t give me any other choice. I had to play along, but I figured he’d do something wrong eventually, and I could use it to get him outta here. Ever since then, they’ve been ‘catching up on old times,’ fighting in the Danger Room, and annoyin’ the hell outta me."

Gambit studied his already half-empty beer bottle, and Bobby just stared non-believing at Wolverine. Both of them were stunned by the news. They had expected to come back to find a good friend all alone, and convince her to come back up to the mountain with them, and have at least a couple of days of fun in her own house. Instead, they had returned to find their best friend, and one of their worst enemies intimately involved. What was worse was that Wolverine and Sabretooth, each other’s worst enemy, were living in the same house, and seemed to be behaving rather cordially towards one another.

Bobby was not quite sure what to make of the situation. He completely trusted Jaguar and Wolverine’s judgement, but could not trust Sabretooth. He knew Jaguar could handle herself, but had seen nothing less than an otherwise deadly blow even slow down the massive man. Besides that, Sabretooth had been known to do things that made his blood run colder than the ice he manipulated. However, he was slowly coming to the conclusion that it was really none of his business, and that he trusted Jaguar more than he feared Sabretooth.

Gambit on the other hand was unwilling to allow himself to come to any conclusion whatsoever until he had heard all of the story, and there were many things that Wolverine had left out of his tale. The most important of which was how Sabretooth had been treating Jaguar, and how Wolverine really felt about the whole thing.