The Boathouse

[Gambit]

Posted by Gambit on Jun 24, 2007, 23:03
(( currently closed ))
The boathouse looked exactly the same it had looked a few years ago. A look at the lock told Gambit it hadn't been touched since - not because he had left it locked in some peculiar way, but because he knew what unused locks usually looked like.

He picked it and opened the door. The hinges squeaked, which was another sign of abandonment. Inside, however, the boathouse looked different. He had left it in a huff, barely restraining himself not to explode the door handle as he had been leaving the boathouse, boiling with anger. The place had been a mess then, his fight with Jean had been huge, words and things alike had been thrown. Now it seemed that somebody had cleaned the place up. Was it her? Or someone who came to take care of Jean after Gambit had left her and the mansion?

It wasn't even too dusty - not something that could have been expected after two years of absence. Remy put his bag down on the floor and walked over to the kitchen window to open it.

Posted by Jean Grey on Jun 25, 2007, 3:47
Jean was outside taking a walk, giving herself some time to think to herself. As she was passing by the water, getting closer to the boathouse, she felt something. Just a slight feeling of excitement and... nostalgia? She was lured to the boathouse and snooped around, looking for the origin of those sensations. As she got close to the house, she heard footsteps from inside. She suspected that it was maybe a few of the students running around, looking for places to explore. "Hello? Who's in there?" Jean called out carefully.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 25, 2007, 9:19
Gambit heard Jean's voice outside. Curious how, of all people at the mansion, it was her to wander here first...

"Come in, Jean," he responded, throwing another glance around the kitchen.

Posted by Jean Grey on Jun 25, 2007, 16:21
The accent again. Jean knew it this time. She didn't realize Gambit would be at the mansion so soon. She still hadn't really talked to Scott about what happened.

Jean walked into the Kitchen to find Gambit. "Hi. I didn't think it would be you in here," she said with a smile. "Uh, how are you?"

Posted by Gambit on Jun 25, 2007, 16:26
"I'm fine," Gambit smiled. "How are you?"

Posted by Jean Grey on Jun 25, 2007, 16:29
Jean said with a slight roll of her eyes, "Oh, I've been better. But I can't complain. So how is the security sweep going? Can we rest better knowing that Gambit installed all of his crazy, fancy, complicated locks to keep the crazies out?" She chuckled and tucked a hand into her jean pocket.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 25, 2007, 16:33
"I've only just arrived," Gambit said. "But hopefully, when I'm done, it will be jus' like you described."

He walked along the cupboards, opening them and checking for any signs of content, mouldy or not.

Posted by Jean Grey on Jun 25, 2007, 16:41
"I can't remember the last time I was in here. It was probably a few summers ago. We locked it up because no one was using it, I guess." Jean walked farther into the kitchen to where Gambit was.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 25, 2007, 16:45
"Two years ago," Gambit corrected. "Prob'bly right after I had left." He leaned with his back against the kitchen counter, looking around.

Posted by Jean Grey on Jun 25, 2007, 16:48
Jean blushed slightly, "Oh, well, that's why I probably don't remember being in here. That time is just... wiped from my memory," she said, chuckling. "Uh, anyway... How long do you think you'd be here?"

Posted by Gambit on Jun 25, 2007, 16:53
"A week, mebbe..." Gambit shrugged, studying the place with one final critical glance. "Mebbe more. It's gonna be a lot of work."

Posted by Jean Grey on Jun 25, 2007, 16:58
"Do you want any help? I don't want to be in your way, if not... I just. Thought maybe if no one else offered, then maybe I could step in and help you some... But I understand if you want to work alone..." Jean rambled like this for a few seconds, hoping that Gambit would stop her. She felt awkward around him. And talking like this made her feel even more stupid.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 25, 2007, 17:01
Remy grinned. "I don't know yet. I need t' take a look at de place, see how things work, plan stuff.... Den I'll be buried in cables, screws, switch-gears... won't dis all technical stuff be borin' for ya?"

Posted by Jean Grey on Jun 25, 2007, 17:04
"Well. Uh. No... I like to learn about new stuff." Jean felt uncomfortable in her jeans and tank top. Somehow, she felt ugly and unkept. "So what are you checking for in here?"

Posted by Gambit on Jun 25, 2007, 17:07
"I'm gonna live here," Gambit said. "Dis used to be my place when I was wit' de team, I got rid of most junk here an' did some repairs, so it became a nice bungalow."

Posted by Jean Grey on Jun 25, 2007, 17:13
Jean raised her eyebrows, "But what about your places in the city? Are you going to go back and forth from here to your club every night?"

Posted by Gambit on Jun 25, 2007, 17:17
"De club runs by itself," Remy said. "I'm free to come an' go as I wish. So I'll jus' stay here for now."

Posted by Shade on Jun 25, 2007, 17:20
Shade had seen the boathouse earlier, but had never been there. As Gambit had told her he would be staying there and as she had nothing to do she had decided to take a stroll over there to say Hi and have a look around. Approaching the door, she could hear voices. Poking her head inside, she could see Gambit stand in the room and Jean nearby. She had met Jean before, but only once.
"Hey." she said giving both of them a smile. "I thought I´d drop in and see if it´s a nice place."
Posted by Jean Grey on Jun 25, 2007, 17:22
"Hi, there." Jean said as Shade walked in. "How have you been? I haven't seen you around much."

Posted by Gambit on Jun 25, 2007, 17:26
Gambit gave Shade a small wave of his hand. "It's a nice place, but been a bit abandoned. At least it's not trashed anymore," he grinned. "Come in, take a look."

Posted by Shade on Jun 25, 2007, 17:29
Shade stepped further into the room and closer to Gambit, having a look around. "Looks nice to me." she said. "My room back home looked much worse."

Turning towards the other woman she noticed Jean was right. When had been the last time she had met Jean? It had to be weeks ago. Shade tried to think back, but failed. "I´ve been great." she said, tossing a glance at Gambit. "And so true, not seen much of you. So what about you?"

Posted by Jean Grey on Jun 25, 2007, 17:29
"I've been all right, thanks." Turning to Gambit, Jean noticed that the two didn't express bewilderment. "So, you two know each other?"

Posted by Gambit on Jun 25, 2007, 17:35
"Yep," Gambit nodded. "Shade's my girlfriend." He decided to say it now, that way it would probably be more honest towards Jean.

Posted by Jean Grey on Jun 25, 2007, 17:37
Jean felt her stomach drop and a lump form in her throat. She tried to make it seem as though it didn't bother her, but Jean had pictured Gambit's girlfriend to be someone she didn't even know... Someone different. Jean forced a smile and looked at Shade, "Oh, okay."

Posted by Shade on Jun 25, 2007, 17:41
Shade noticed that Jean´s smile looked a little forced but decided that commenting on that would be insensitive and rude. Gambit was a handsome guy after all and she had by now gotten a grasp of his flirtatious attitude. Maybe it would be best to change the topic.

Posted by Jean Grey on Jun 25, 2007, 17:46
Jean assumed that Shade didn't know about what had happened and she wasn't about to bring it up. If Gambit wanted to tell Shade, then that wasn't Jean's business to meddle in. Jean didn't know what else to say without sounding nervous, so she just sort of stood there and smiled meekly.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 25, 2007, 17:47
Gambit noticed an awkward pause that ensued. He turned to Jean. "Is Ororo around?" he asked. "I'd love t' see her sometime, now dat I'm here."

Posted by Shade on Jun 25, 2007, 17:49
Shade was glad that the silence was broken before it could turn into something awkward. When Gambit asked for Ororo - she thought to recall this was Storm´s real name, she tossed Jean a smile and started to walk around the room, taking a look around casually.

Posted by Jean Grey on Jun 25, 2007, 17:49
"Ororo? Well, not for a few days. But she should be around somewhere, of course." Even if he didn't mean to, Gambit's eyes pierced through Jean's own and she couldn't shake her uncomfortable feeling.
((Sorry, guys. I have to leave in ten minutes...))

Posted by Gambit on Jun 25, 2007, 17:54
"Awright," Gambit nodded, "I'm sho I'll find her, den."

[Gambit]

Posted by Shade on Jun 25, 2007, 17:58
Shade had found a back door which led directly to the water. What a pretty place she thought when she walked back into the room where Gambit and Jean still were. "Nice place." she commented with an approving smile not meaning to interrupt their conversation.

Posted by Jean Grey on Jun 25, 2007, 17:58
Instead of feeling awkward, Jean was beginning to grow jealous. As she watched Shade comfortably around the room, she wanted to switch places with her. They seemed to be happy, and Jean had only seen them together for a few moments. "I bet she'd want to see you, too," she said, trying to think about something else other than what happened at the Hellfire.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 25, 2007, 18:01
Gambit smiled at Shade. "Yeah," he said to Jean, "I met Pietro Maximoff a few days ago; he reminded me I should see her, and I already feel guilty for stayin' away for so long."

Posted by Jean Grey on Jun 25, 2007, 18:03
Forcing herself to concentrate on their conversation, Jean said, "I bet it's not that big a deal. She'll just be happy that you stopped by." I know I am.
((Ag. Gotta go...))

Posted by Gambit on Jun 25, 2007, 18:16
"I hope so," Remy grinned. "Wouldn't wanna get scolded..." He wondered if Jean at all knew his relation to Storm.

Posted by Shade on Jun 25, 2007, 18:19
Shade sat down on the floor, leaning against the wall. "I´m sure she´ll have a reason for that if she does so." she said jokingly.

Posted by Jean Grey on Jun 25, 2007, 21:25
Jean raised an eyebrow, "Why would you be scolded?"

Posted by Gambit on Jun 25, 2007, 21:28
"Because I haven't seen her in ages," Remy explained. "A friend could do better..."

Posted by Shade on Jun 25, 2007, 22:17
"So could a daugther." Shade said. "Most people are not too resentful when one comes toppling in to say Hi after a longer while."

Posted by Jean Grey on Jun 25, 2007, 22:19
Jean had no idea what Shade was talking about. She stood there, looking back and forth between the two for a hint as to what she meant.

Posted by Shade on Jun 25, 2007, 22:21
Seeing Jean´s bewilderment, Shade looked up. "Oh...er... I was talking about my parents." she explained. "I visited them some days ago after a longer while that´s why I meantioned it."

Posted by Gambit on Jun 25, 2007, 22:22
Gambit noticed Jean's reaction and decided to help her out a bit. "Shade means her recent family visit," he said.

Posted by Jean Grey on Jun 25, 2007, 22:23
Jean gave a nod in recognition. "I think I should go... Leave you two alone. I'll see you around, though."

Posted by Shade on Jun 25, 2007, 22:24
Jean was feeling awkward, Shade could clearly tell that. She tried hard to come up with something comforting. She didn´t like people around her to feel awkward.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 25, 2007, 22:30
"Drop by," Gambit said. "Even though Gambit'll prob'ly be in all places an' nowhere at once..."

Posted by Jean Grey on Jun 25, 2007, 22:31
"Well... Okay. It was nice to see you both..." Jean turned for the door, trying to make her way out.

Posted by Shade on Jun 25, 2007, 22:32
Shade felt a little sorry for Jean. Whatever was going through the other woman´s mind, she was obviously distressed by something. "Yeah, well... and I´ll be around as well." she said. "Although we didn´t see much of each other so far."

Posted by Gambit on Jun 25, 2007, 22:35
Gambit felt that Jean had been made uncomfortable by the whole episode, but there was nothing he could do to help her with that - she would have to learn to deal with it herself.

Posted by Jean Grey on Jun 26, 2007, 16:44
Once outside the boathouse, Jean felt as though she could breathe again. She hadn't realized until then that she had been taking small, constricting breaths. Gambit was different to her, now. He didn't seem like the charasmatic, flirty guy that he was that night at the club. Now he was just.... someone's boyfriend. Jean silently scolded herself for getting wrapped up in her own mental mess.

Posted by Shade on Jun 26, 2007, 17:00
Shade watched Jean go and scowled slightly. "Is it just me or was that just slightly awkward." she wondered aloud.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 26, 2007, 17:08
"It was," Remy nodded. "Jean is my ex-girlfriend. I don' suppose she was too thrilled t' find out about ya."

Posted by Shade on Jun 26, 2007, 17:11
That would explain a lot indeed. Shade hadn´t seen or heard what they had been talking about before she had entered, but rewinding the conversation between the three of them, Jean´s behaviour had been rather forced after Gambit had referred to herself as his girlfriend.

"I can imagine." she said, still sitting on the floor, crossing her legs Indian style. She could sympathise with that. Most likely, her reaction would have been the same had she been in Jean´s stead.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 26, 2007, 17:34
"So..." Remy leaned back a bit, looking at her as he put his hands in his jeans pockets. "What d'ya think 'bout dis place?"

Posted by Shade on Jun 26, 2007, 17:40
He didn´t want to continue talking about Jean, Shade could tell. Otherwise he wouldn´t ask a question she had already given an answer to. But she was okay with that. It either meant that it was no longer of concern to him or didn´t matter just now. If he ever felt like bringing the issue up again he would, but obviously wasn´t in a mood for it now. Fine for me, Shade thought with an inward shrug although she felt a hint of pity for Jean feeling so awkward around them.

"It´s pretty." she said. "Did you stay here earlier? Before you left to get your club?"

Posted by Gambit on Jun 26, 2007, 17:55
"Two years ago," Gambit said.

Posted by Shade on Jun 26, 2007, 19:41
Shade nodded, smiling to herself. A boathouse seemed fitting for someone who had grown up near Mississippi she thought. "I wouldn´t mind if you stayed here more often." she said, getting up walking over to him.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 26, 2007, 19:48
"Of course ya wouldn't," Gambit smirked. "But I prefer t' live by myself, so if I feel like destroying some property or disturbin' some peace, I destroy my own property an' disturb my own peace." He extended his hand to her.

Posted by Shade on Jun 26, 2007, 19:50
Shade walked closer and slung her arms around his neck chuckling. "No worries," she said "I didn´t plan on moving in. You can have your ´on your own place´. Little as it is, I kind of like my wee little dorm with shower."

Posted by Gambit on Jun 26, 2007, 19:55
"I wasn't referrin' to ya, chere," Remy said, putting his arms around her waist.

Posted by Shade on Jun 26, 2007, 19:57
"Okay." Shade said, leaning a little closer so her lips were almost touching his. "does that mean I can drop in whenever I feel like sexually harrassing Gambit?"

[Gambit]

Posted by Gambit on Jun 26, 2007, 20:01
"Absolutely," Remy grinned, speaking in a lower voice. "Gambit might not be here, of course, but he wouldn't mind come here and find Shade lyin' in a sexy pose and some sexy underwear on his bed."

Posted by Shade on Jun 26, 2007, 20:04
Shade smirked a little. "Oh, damn." she said. "I guess all my concentration for lesson planning just went out of the window, not that I know I´ll not even have to take that annoying bus into the city to make out with you."

Posted by Gambit on Jun 26, 2007, 22:10
"Oh, in dat case, I'll keep my doors locked," Remy made a disappointed face. "Wouldn't wanna keep you from your lessons, cheri."

Posted by Shade on Jun 26, 2007, 22:14
Shade raised an eyebrow at him. "And what if I wanted to keep myself from my lessons?" she asked. "Or well...they´re not that many anyways, but still I might be tempted to give the kids some project work or whatever to get an excuse."

Posted by Gambit on Jun 26, 2007, 22:20
"Okay," Remy smiled, "distraction ya want, distraction ya get. Just t' remind you, dis be not Hellfire Club an' I'm gonna actually work here." It should have been done ages ago, and he wanted to hurry himself up a bit.

Posted by Shade on Jun 26, 2007, 23:01
Shade nodded with a smile, reaching out for him with a hand, running her fingers through his hair. She wouldn´t want to keep him from working, as she sensed it was something important. "I´ll give you enough time for your work." she said. But what kind of work. "Does this working have to do with the attacks?" she asked then. It was a guess, but it sounded logical to her somehow. Xavier could use some help and with Gambit´s thieving skills he might be useful in some way.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 26, 2007, 23:05
"Not directly," Remy said. "Just some security stuff..." Following a protective instinct, he leaned to her and kissed her on the forehead. "...which should have been dere durin' de attacks."

Posted by Shade on Jun 26, 2007, 23:08
Shade smiled a little at his kiss, then leant her head against his shoulder. "I´ll sleep better knowing you take care of that." she said honestly. She had confidence in his skills and was sure he would make the mansion a safer place and one more difficult to attack.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 26, 2007, 23:10
"Which is why I do it, chere," Remy said honestly, wrapping his arms closer around her.

Posted by Shade on Jun 26, 2007, 23:14
That reply surprised her, as it implied nothing less than Gambit admitting openly that he cared for her safety - for her. How had he reacted when he had been at the Hellfire after the attack? Hadn´t she believed to hear a faint sting of relief in his voice when he had spotted her. Shade let him draw her closer, doing likewise, wrapping her arms around him. "Thank you." she said in a low voice.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 26, 2007, 23:18
Gambit smiled softly. He kissed her on the temple without saying anything.

Posted by Shade on Jun 26, 2007, 23:26
It was a moment that didn´t really need any words - Shade liked when they had moments like these. She closed her eyes leaning in to his soft kiss a little, doing nothing but enjoying his closeness breathing in his scent. It was good to have him here, in many ways.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 26, 2007, 23:32
Holding his head close to hers, Gambit could feel her emotions in the clearest way possible for his faint empathy. They matched his, and he let himself get distracted by that unison as he simply closed his eyes and enjoyed the feeling.

Posted by Shade on Jun 26, 2007, 23:36
It was strange, Shade thought. However hard things about emotions sometimes were for him as far as she herself could gather, there was no denying in the fact that moments like these, moments where he would just hold her close, moments that didn´t need words, were getting more frequent. She felt a warm, happy feeling spread inside her because of this, but tried not to get lost in it, not to give in to any too enthusiastic hopes. Instead she just kept breathing, letting her thoughts run free, keeping her eyes closed.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 27, 2007, 11:35
Still holding her close, Gambit leaned and kissed her neck.
(( I'm in a HUGE block, but had to squeeze some writing already out of myself ))

Posted by Shade on Jun 27, 2007, 11:38
Shade craned her head a little but apart from that, didn´t move much. Once more she wished to be an empath as her own emotions had to be clear as anything to him in this moment. Her hands travelled a little higher and entwined in his hair.
((*gives you a virtual anti block cookie* ))

Posted by Gambit on Jun 27, 2007, 12:02
Continuing kissing her neck, Gambit turned them both around so that Shade was now standing with her back to the kitchen counter.
(( *virtually munches on the cookie* ))

Posted by Shade on Jun 27, 2007, 12:05
Despite the comfortable and totally relaxed feeling their closeness generated in her, Shade could feel her heartbeat quicken a little at his kisses. She craned her head a little more so she could kiss him as well and her hands started to draw stroking patterns at the back of his head.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 27, 2007, 12:09
Capturing her mouth with his, Gambit slipped his hands under her top, sliding them upwards to her breasts.

Posted by Shade on Jun 27, 2007, 12:12
Shade responded to his kiss and parting his lips with her tongue, slid it inside his mouth, softly but at the same time demandingly stroking it along the roof of his mouth.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 27, 2007, 12:18
Playing with her tongue, Remy cupped her breasts with his palms, pressing them softly.

Posted by Shade on Jun 27, 2007, 12:21
Shade deepened the kiss, feeling her own excitement awaken. Her grip around his neck tightened and became more demanding and she moved her lower body against him to seek more contact.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 27, 2007, 13:02
Reponding to her kiss with the same eagerness, Gambit lowered his hands again, unbuttoning her jeans.

Posted by Shade on Jun 27, 2007, 13:06
Shade did not object to what he was doing but continued kissing him, feeling that she was getting more and more excited. A short thought flashed through her head. Had Jean closed teh door when she had left? She wasn´t sure but then again did it really matter? Whoever would ever come down here after the place had been empty for so long? She wiped the thought away.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 27, 2007, 13:17
Remy went lower with his kisses, along Shade's neck, to her collarbones, then knelt in front of her and kissed her stomach, pulling her jeans down over her hips.

Posted by Shade on Jun 27, 2007, 13:20
Shade followed what he was doing with her eyes, never letting her gaze stray from him. Her hands kept twirling his hair until he knelt down.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 27, 2007, 13:28
Pulling her jeans down, Gambit followed them with his lips, kissing Shade's skin as more and more of it became revealed. When he reached her knees, he tugged on the jeans together with Shade's sandals, getting her to step out of them.

Posted by Shade on Jun 27, 2007, 13:30
Shade took the hint and lifted her legs to step out of her trousers, brushing off her sandals as she did so.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 27, 2007, 13:44
Rising back to his feet, Remy trailed his fingers up along Shade's legs. Before he leaned to kiss her, he decided to take her top off, which he tugged upwards.

Posted by Shade on Jun 27, 2007, 13:47
Shade raised her arms, letting him continue to undress her. Gambit himself was still fully clothed, but right now she enjoyed his closeness too much to really bother and therefore decided to let him take the lead for now.

[Gambit]

Posted by Gambit on Jun 27, 2007, 13:56
As soon as her top was off, Gambit dropped it on the counter nearby and kissed her again, while his hands already reached the clasp of her bar.

Posted by Shade on Jun 27, 2007, 14:00
When he kissed her again, Shade noticed that her breath was already more hurried than usual. Moving closer to him again so her bare stomach was against his body, she closed her eyes, deepening the kiss.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 27, 2007, 14:05
Remy unclasped her bra and pulled it off, then took off his t-shirt and returned to kissing Shade's lips. His hands were stroking her bare back.

Posted by Shade on Jun 27, 2007, 14:07
Now that he had taken off his shirt as well and she could revel in the touch of skin against skin, Shade felt a slight tingle of excitement take hold of her which swept away her temporary patience with him still being clothed. Continuing to kiss him, one of her hands slowly made its way down his bare chest and stomach, reaching for the buckle of Gambit´s belt.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 27, 2007, 14:14
Allowing her to unbuckle his belt, Gambit leaned to kiss the curve of her left shoulder, tasting her skin with slow yet demanding kisses.

Posted by Shade on Jun 27, 2007, 14:17
Closing her eyes, Shade tilted her head to the side a little. She loved it when he kissed her neck like this, he had quickly found out it was a sensible area for her and for a moment she got distracted, before she continued working on his trousers, unbuttoning them.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 27, 2007, 14:37
Remy added his tongue to his kisses, teasing Shade's skin and bringing out more powerful sensations; at the same time he moved his hands to her breasts, caressing their sensitive underside.

Posted by Shade on Jun 27, 2007, 15:04
Shade unzipped his jeans slowly, not because she wanted to tease him, but because she was starting to get really distracted. They had not had sex since their little adventure on Hudson which had been before she had left for North Carolina and therefore she found it diffcult to keep control.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 27, 2007, 15:22
Moving slowly up her neck, Gambit almost reached her ear as he whispered, "Je te veux, chere..." His hot breath blew over her aroused skin. "Je veux t'aimer... je veux te baiser..." His fingers slid over her body and pressed into the small of her back.

Posted by Shade on Jun 27, 2007, 15:28
His whispered words and demanding grip fuelled Shade´s arousal and she arched her body into his touch. Her French was so rudimentary that she did not understand more than ´je´ and ´te´ from what he was saying, but felt it wasn´t necessary to understand everything as his whole body explained his words anyways.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 27, 2007, 15:34
Her response raised his excitement, and he pulled her panties down, sliding his lips to the other side of her neck along a wet trail of needy kisses.

Posted by Shade on Jun 27, 2007, 15:40
Shade left her eyes closed, completely giving in to his hungry kisses. Trying to fight for control was useless anyways, she decided. She tried to press herself even closer to him. "I want you." she exhaled in a low voice, her own words sounding strange to her as her voice was a few shades darker and more hurried than usual.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 27, 2007, 15:49
"And I want you..." Remy responded in a just as throaty voice as her own, as he broke off her skin for a second. Then he leaned down to completely take her panties off and, straightening up, picked Shade up and seated her on the kitchen counter.

Posted by Shade on Jun 27, 2007, 15:53
Whenever his voice sounded like this, Shade found herself unable to escape the effect it had on her. Allowing him to lift her up, she framed his face with her hands and started to nibble on his jawline, looking at him while she did so, her eyes darkened with desire.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 27, 2007, 15:56
Remy allowed her to do what she wanted, and kept his face close to hers, his eyes half-closed, while he took his remaining clothes off.

Posted by Shade on Jun 27, 2007, 15:58
Shade kept watching him, studying the outlines of his face, his half closed eyes, while she kept nibbling his jawline, then moved on and let her tongue briefly flicker against the corner of his mouth before she claimed his lips for another, more demanding kiss, sucking on his tongue.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 27, 2007, 16:05
Gambit hooked his hands under Shade's knees and pulled her closer to the edge of the counter. He responded to her kiss, engaging in playful fencing with her tongue.

Posted by Shade on Jun 27, 2007, 16:10
Shade could feel her breath grow quicker once more and aided him when he pulled her closer, keeping her eyes open to look at Gambit while she continued kissing him.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 27, 2007, 16:14
Spreading her legs wider, Gambit entered her in one slow thrust; the pleasure was so great that he almost bit her tongue, sucking on it in a forceful kiss.

Posted by Shade on Jun 27, 2007, 16:43
His kiss became more demanding and told Shade all about the pleasure Gambit felt. It mirrored her own and she felt her whole body tingle in anticipation when he entered her. She let out a low moan into the kiss, moving to meet him.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 27, 2007, 16:53
Bending his knees a bit to get a better angle, Gambit started making long moves in and out of her at a moderate tempo, still paying more attention to the kiss.

Posted by Shade on Jun 27, 2007, 17:47
The tingle all over her body increased slightly but settled, not bringing her anywhere near a climax yet. Moving her hips a little to meet his movements as much as her position allowed, Shade continued kissing him, drawing him closer and against her, then broke away a little, gasping for breath.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 27, 2007, 18:02
Remy allowed her to break for air, but leaned in closer, wanting more skin-on-skin contact. Making longer thrusts, he sought to bring out more pleasure for Shade in the sensations she was receiving from him.

Posted by Shade on Jun 27, 2007, 18:07
Shade let out another moan not just because of the sensations he was creating inside her but also because of the skin to skin contact and the affection she felt for him, floating her mind like waves. Wanting to give back as much as possible, she tried to work her inner muscles on him slowly.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 27, 2007, 18:20
Feeling the pressure of her inner muscles, Gambit couldn't hold back a gasp. "Dieu, Shade..." he whispered, taking it as incentive to thrust into her with more power as he held her hips with his hands.

Posted by Shade on Jun 27, 2007, 18:25
Encouraged by his eager response, Shade tried to keep up the movements of her muscles for a moment, until she lost control again. Giving in to his increased speed, she leant in to gently tug on Gambit´s earlobe.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 27, 2007, 19:08
Hitching up Shade's legs higher, Remy pushed himself into her with everything he had. He needed her closeness and intended to take as much of it as she could give him.

Posted by Shade on Jun 27, 2007, 20:05
Shade noticed he was just as needy as she was herself, hungry for closeness which for her was both physical and emotional. Losing herself to the flow of it, she bucked herself against him letting go of her restrains. She tilted back her head, stretching her body a little, letting the sensations drown out everything around them.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 27, 2007, 20:26
Remy supported her with one hand behind her neck and the other one pressing firmly to the small of her back so that Shade would not fall back on the slippery surface of the kitchen counter. Thrusting harder into her, he felt his mind switch off and his body go on on its own accord.

Posted by Shade on Jun 27, 2007, 20:29
His support allowed Shade to better react to his movements and she did, giving all she had. What had started as a tender embrace had turned into needy and fierce lovemaking, but she was enjoying every second of it. If this was what Gambit needed right now, she was willing to give it to him and she knew that she herself was hungry enough for him to feel the same.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 27, 2007, 20:51
The responsiveness of her body, the need that emanated from her and matched his own were all that was needed to drive Gambit over the edge. Looking at her, he could tell she was near her climax - he had seen it many times and knew the exact moment by now - and, hrowing his head backwards, he allowed himself to completely lose his control, coming with a deep groan.

Posted by Shade on Jun 27, 2007, 20:54
Gambit´s climax was too much for her to bear. His final thrusts, his groan was more than Shade could take and she joined him in his orgasm, moaning loudly when she came, feeling only then how huge her own sexual tension had been. Grinding her hips against him mechanically, she rode out her own climax and then leant her head against his shoulder, panting heavily.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 27, 2007, 21:16
Breathing heavily, Gambit held Shade around the back, leaning against her softly. He felt his legs give in a bit and had to support himself with one hand against the counter.

Posted by Shade on Jun 27, 2007, 21:22
Shade could feel his body tremble slightly and she slung her arms around his neck, leant closer and kissed his shoulder gently.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 27, 2007, 21:52
Turning to her, Gambit kissed her on the cheek. He stroked her back slowly. "Ah chere..." he said quietly, nuzzling his face close to hers.

Posted by Shade on Jun 27, 2007, 21:58
Shade liked moments like these, when they were that close. She closed her eyes and smiled into the kiss, then opened them again and looked at him, studying his features, her mind empty apart from the thought that she loved him. She leant her forehead against his.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 27, 2007, 22:56
Remy looked at her, leaning his forehead against hers and grinning. Now he was supporting himself with both hands against the counter. "Enjoyin', chere?" he asked with a smirk.

Posted by Shade on Jun 27, 2007, 22:59
Her breath had eased down a little, still her chuckle sounded a little more throaty than usual. "Say, you noticed that?" she asked, mirroring his smirk.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 27, 2007, 23:12
"Moi, 'course I did," Remy chuckled, leaning back. He ran his hand through his hair, looking at Shade.

Posted by Shade on Jun 27, 2007, 23:17
Shade returned his glance. "Guess we just officially re-christened the kitchen of that place" she said chuckling slightly. "Good to know there are even more rooms here."

Posted by Gambit on Jun 27, 2007, 23:20
"Bedroom... shower... an' de boardwalk outside, bien sur..." Remy's face lit up with a hopeful smile.

Posted by Shade on Jun 27, 2007, 23:22
Shade grinned at him. "Sounds good." she said, wondering how much her attitude had changed concerning sex in the last good two months. Earlier he would have gotten an odd glance for just suggesting the boardwalk.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 27, 2007, 23:28
"Bon," Remy pecked her on the nose and leaned down to pick up his clothes and walk to the shower. "I asked de prof 'bout Danger Room," he said, leaving the kitchen. "You're in for some trainin', chere."

Posted by Shade on Jun 27, 2007, 23:31
Gambit knew about her attitude of not wanting to become an X Men and about being a fighter herself in general but this was about self defence and also, as she had never been in the Danger Room before, Shade found herself curious about what it might look like, or how it worked.
"Really?" she asked, following him. "That´s great."

Posted by Gambit on Jun 27, 2007, 23:36
"It is," Remy agreed. He threw his clothes on the bathroom floor and opened the cabinet where he used to keep towels. Surprisingly, some of them were still there. "Mon dieu, dis place froze in time..." he sighed, taking out two towels, for him and for Shade.

[Gambit]

Posted by Shade on Jun 27, 2007, 23:42
Shade smiled a little, watching him. "Well then again..." she said, taking one of the towels. "Whoever would have an interest in nicking towels after you´d been gone?" She shrugged.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 27, 2007, 23:50
"Je sais pas," Gambit said. He turned the water on; the tap coughed a few times, spitting out rusty bubbles, and finally released clear hot water. Gambit switched it to the shower. "Point is, I... kinda expected dis place t' have been used. Not preserved like some goddamn house-museum. Dere were always people like me here who liked havin' a place of deir own, some distance... But now dat Remy find dis house locked an' untouched, Remy don't know what t' think..." he sighed, noticing he was getting emotional during this speech. He shook his head and stepped under the shower. "See, dere are prob'ly only two reasons to it - one is, dey missed me so much dat dey left my place untouched, two is, dey hated me so much at dey didn't even touch anythin'."

Posted by Shade on Jun 27, 2007, 23:56
He was seriously thinking about this, Shade noticed. She stepped into the shower with him, looking at him thoughtfully. "You know.." she said. "ever since I´ve been here I never really paid attention to the fact that there was actually a boathouse." She shook her head a little. "Maybe it´s just that people here accepted this place to be your place and therefore left it empty so you could return whenever you liked. There´s no necessity for these two extremes."

Posted by Gambit on Jun 27, 2007, 23:59
"Gambit get weird feeling when people get attached to 'im like dis, p'tite," Remy explained.

Posted by Shade on Jun 28, 2007, 0:16
Of course he did, Shade thought. This just totally fitted what she had gathered from his personality so far. It fit so well.
"I know." she said, stepping under the water, but still looking at him. "But despite all the weirdness, isn´t there also a tiny little bit that says ´Hey. Here I am again. And that crazy lot left my place in one piece.´?"

Posted by Gambit on Jun 28, 2007, 0:21
"It's worse," Gambit said. "I left dis place completely trashed. I... we... had an argument wit' Jean."

Posted by Shade on Jun 28, 2007, 0:24
Shade did not need special abilities to tell how much this distressed him. "So you came back and found it just like that?" she asked. "Trashed?"

Posted by Gambit on Jun 28, 2007, 0:31
"No, dat's de point," Remy said, "found it just like it is now." He had been sure they hated him after he had left like this, after his break-up with Jean, where it was so hard to pinpoint the party responsible, and to find the place tidy and somehow even calm, without remains of any aggressive aura, was completely unexpected. He didn't know how to explain it all to Shade.

Posted by Shade on Jun 28, 2007, 0:38
Shade nodded, thinking about what he said. Somehow it made sense. If they had left the place completely untouched with nothing being moved removed, Gambit would have had the impression that people simply hadn´t cared enough to tidy up. He could have assumed that Gambit was no longer important to them, that he didn´t matter enough to look after his place. Coming back to a clean place, a changed place that maybe didn´t remind of the state he had left it in had to give him the impression that someone had cared enough to tidy up. And Shade knew by now that it was easiest for Gambit to deal with things if people had a so-what?-I-don´t-care attitude.

She gave him a thoughtful look. "Well..." she said after a while. "I guess you know this whole place a whole lot longer than I do, but in the months I´ve been here I learned one thing: these guys, especially Xavier, care about people. No idea who looked after your place, but it somehow fits. If noone else at least the Prof would not want to leave this place a mess, because he would see a possibility for your return one day and it doesn´t fit into his image to let people return to a messy place."

Posted by Gambit on Jun 28, 2007, 0:43
"I know," Gambit said. "It's just... I dunno, I ain't used to it."

He was lying, of course; he had had people caring about him, he knew how it felt. Simply over the years of estrangement from Xavier's mansion and its people, he had taught himself not to put too much caring of his own into his memories of the place. Now it turned out it had been a wrong thing to do, and that bothered him most of all.

Posted by Shade on Jun 28, 2007, 0:55
He had left two years ago he had told her. Concidering everything she knew of him by now, of how he behaved and thought about things, Shade imagined he hadn´t given this much thought since then and now it came rushing back. The caring, the people. And that confused him.

She stepped a little closer and wrapped her arms around his waist looking up at him. "It´s confusing to come back again after a long time?" she more stated then asked. If it was that, she could understand it.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 28, 2007, 0:57
"No," Remy said. "It's not comin' back in itself, it's... somethin' else."

Posted by Shade on Jun 28, 2007, 0:58
Shade nodded. Most likely it was hard for himself to describe what this ´something else´ even was. "Like to give it a try and describe it?" she offered, leaving him the option to just say no and back out.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 28, 2007, 1:01
"Mebbe not now," Gambit said, touching her arm in an absent-minded gesture. "I think it figures itself out when I spend a few days here."

Posted by Shade on Jun 28, 2007, 1:06
He was curious when it came to figuring out things. When it involved himself figuring out things it was either drawing back and letting things get untangled by themselves or he would plunge in and follow something down to the very core. As he had done back at the disco or in their rather awkward conversation after the pool episode in Tunisia. Yes, Gambit had his own way handling such things.

Shade nodded again. "All right." she said, leaned her chin against his chest and glanced up at them, squeezing one eye shut. "Just... you know. I´m a journal, so if you need someone to ramble or talk about it, I´ll listen." She was reminded of her last conversation with Ethan and it made her smile.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 28, 2007, 1:08
"I remember it," Gambit smiled, "but you're a journal dat should be handled wit' care on my side," he added, "not every word is worth your pages."

Posted by Shade on Jun 28, 2007, 1:11
Shade couldn´t help but smile at that. "Nice way to say it." she said, kissing his shoulder briefly.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 28, 2007, 1:14
"But dat's what you are, Shade," Remy shrugged. "Mebbe even too nice for de thief."

Posted by Shade on Jun 28, 2007, 1:22
Shade continued to look at him. "I´m not nice all the time." she said. "I think I´m just someone who wants people around her feel good. But there are moments when I´d prefer to be anything but nice." She didn´t have to think long to come up with an example. For a floating instant the face of that kidnapper, Terry appeared in her mind again. How she had loathed him, treating her like a bargain. She remembered how furious she had been at him. It had been just the gun and the ropes and some bit of reason to keep her from attacking him.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 28, 2007, 1:25
"Hmm," Remy touched her face. "Curiosity nags me t' wanna see some of such moments... but since prob'ly dey don't result from anything pleasant, I gotta shut up an' hope dat won' happen."

Posted by Shade on Jun 28, 2007, 1:28
Shade smiled faintly. "They mostly kick in when someone´s in danger." she said, understanding his curiosity but not wanting to go into too much detail. "which doesn´t always help, but well... it gets me protective of the person who is in danger and I stop thinking about myself. Maybe that´s another reason why some self defense will do me good."

Posted by Gambit on Jun 28, 2007, 1:29
"Set your instincts in de right direction?" Remy guessed.
(( I'm off... good night! ))

Posted by Shade on Jun 28, 2007, 1:33
Shade nodded. "Instincts, yeah, I guess that´s how one could describe it. Protective instincts."
((Sleep well ))

Posted by Gambit on Jun 28, 2007, 9:47
"Awright," Remy splashed some water into his face and stepped out of the shower, grabbing the towel. "We'll see how it goes." His mind was already in its habitual track of planning and setting up strategies. How to get Shade's protective instincts to kick in at the right moment? Place himself in danger and see how she handles it? His imagination offered a fleeting image of enraged invisible Shade viciosly kicking the gigantic foot of a Sentinel, and he snickered, hiding his quiet laughter in the towel as he wiped his face.

Posted by Shade on Jun 28, 2007, 10:28
"Yeah." Shade agreed. "We´ll see how it goes." She leant back her head and let the water splash down her body. How did the Danger Room work? She had no idea and curiosity was nagging on her now. She had been down in the basement once, months ago, during her first days at the mansion, together with Rogue who had mentioned the Danger Room, but then they had gone to have a look at the jet hangar. In any way, that promised to get interesting, Shade thought.

Shade finished her shower, she stepped out, grabbed for the towel and started to dry herself, watching Gambit as she did so. "You know what?" she changed the topic. "I think I´ll really have a little party on Monday night. Weather looks nice enough for that so I´ll just have to go invite some people or the whole mansion to drop in, so... you´re the first one to be invited now."

Posted by Gambit on Jun 28, 2007, 10:40
"Oh wow," Remy said. "What do I have t' do now?"

Posted by Shade on Jun 28, 2007, 10:42
Shade chuckled, drying her hair with the towel. "Nothing." she said. "Show up for starters?"

Posted by Gambit on Jun 28, 2007, 10:47
"Dat's it?" Remy said in a tone of disbelief.
(( is it Thursday, then? ))

Posted by Shade on Jun 28, 2007, 10:50
"Basically." Shade said. "But if you like you could help me carry out chairs and all that stuff for food before the party."
((*checks calender* The 2nd would be Monday ))

Posted by Gambit on Jun 28, 2007, 10:55
"Sure," Remy said. He walked out of the shower, grabbing his clothes, and started getting dressed in the bedroom.
(( no, I meant right now during this convo ))

Posted by Shade on Jun 28, 2007, 10:59
Shade finished drying herself and slung the towel around her hair, then walked over into the kitchen to collect her clothes. She got dressed quickly, then went over into the bedroom where Gambit still was, crossed it and leant in the doorframe that led out to the boardwalk, looking at the water. "I like lakes." she said, her head against the frame.
((Er... she came back in a Sunday, went to Hellfire...possibly, yeah.))

Posted by Gambit on Jun 28, 2007, 11:07
"Rivers an' oceans," Remy nodded, walking over to her. "I know." He glanced outside, checking the condition of the boardwalk and the door that lead there.

Posted by Shade on Jun 28, 2007, 11:09
"Yeah." Shade said, glancing at him, then looking ahead of her again. "They´ve all got something calming about them." And they reminded her of back home, especially lakes did.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 28, 2007, 11:18
"How come you didn't move to de boathouse durin' de time ya been livin' here, I don't get it," Remy said. He left the bedroom and walked to his bag that he had dropped on the kitchen floor.

Posted by Shade on Jun 28, 2007, 11:20
Shade shrugged. "I never thought about it. And I never knew one could move here. When I came here I got my dorm the first evening and was fine with it. It felt good having people around."

Posted by Gambit on Jun 28, 2007, 11:28
"Dieu, you're so different from me..." Gambit shook his head in slight disbelief. He glanced at her. "I'm gonna go buy some stuff t' live here, you're stayin' or comin' wit' me?"

Posted by Shade on Jun 28, 2007, 11:32
He made an effort pointing out their differences at times. Shade knew that by now and decided not to comment on it. "Buy stuff as in decoration thingies and stuff for the fridge? Because if so I should maybe come with you and make sure you buy the right colours of edible fingerpaint." She flashed him a grin.

Posted by Gambit on Jun 28, 2007, 11:35
Gambit glared at her. "Woman, stop thinkin' 'bout sex all de time. Some food and shampoo would be nice, for starters," he said.

Posted by Shade on Jun 28, 2007, 11:38
Shade laughed out loud. "What?" she said, making an innocent face, looking at him. "Was just a suggestion and whoever said I necessarily connect edible fingerpaint to sex?"

Posted by Gambit on Jun 28, 2007, 11:42
"I did," Remy winked. "Let's go."

Posted by Shade on Jun 28, 2007, 11:45
"Sure you did." Shade said, rolling her eyes jokingly. "But I´m just thinking about sex, uh-huh." She took off the towel and straightened her still damp hair a little. "All right, let´s go." she agreed.

[Shade]

******

It had already started to get dark when Shade made her way down to the boathouse, a little pocket lamp in her right jeans pocket, a print out from a "How to pick a lock" instruction she had found on the web in her left. Mystique had indeed found some pick locks for her and Shade in all honesty did not have the slightest idea how to use them. She had watched Gambit pick locks countless times by now but had never tried to pick one herself, yet her curiosity whether she could do it had prompted her to ask for pick locks instead of simply asking the professor whether he had some extra keys.

The boathouse lock didn´t look special, at least she didn´t think so which probably didn´t mean much anyways. Shade unfolded the instructions which she had read several times by now and placed it down on the floor, getting to her knees to be on eye level with the lock. She looked down at the tools in her hand - a number of lock picks which looked slightly different each - and picked two which looked similar to the ones on the instruction sheet. So locks worked with cylinders, that much she understood. Seperate pins in that cylinder, usually five which had to be pressed down to an exact point to fit in with what would usually be the key´s shape.

Reading once more she chose a pick and a tension wrench. At least that much seemed obvious and the tools she was now holding looked like the ones on the printout. Following the instruction,s she inserted the tension wrench into the lower part of the keyhole. She needed two attempts to get it sorted out, but so far it seemed easy. Carefully, she tried the next step, turning the wrench slightly into the direction she would usually turn the key. She was being too firm and had to try several times to get it into a position which at least felt like she was doing something correct.

With the next step it seemed she was heading for the tricky part. Inserting the pick into the upper part of the keyhole was rather easy, feeling for the pins was harder, and finding the "most stubborn pin" was difficult. Shade didn´t realised she was by now having an oddly concentrated look on her face and she had no idea how long it took her until she thought that pin "set" as described. She got on her knees properly instead of cowering in front of the door as her legs and back were starting to hurt slightly from the uncomfortable position, shifting carefully to not move the tools in the lock.

She concentrated again. If she understood things right, she had to press this first pin up and out of the cylinder so once it snapped back down when she retreated the pick, it would no longer block the lock when she would later turn the wrench. And if she was indeed doing things right there, she had to do the same thing with all the other pins in the cylinder, five as a whole, snapping them out of the cylinder and then letting them fall down into it again unblocked. Her mind was beginning to form a mental image of the interior of the lock, trying to aid her clumsy fingers which rather feebly groped and tested for the single pins. It was hard to tell them apart, let alone separate them enough to get the single pins pushed up one after the next.

It took her a long time but her ambition and curiosity had set in by now and she was determined not to give up. Her back was a little worse by now, but she barely felt it. The light was getting less and less and she labourously took the pocket lamp between her teeth to illuminate the locks and her hands. She was so immersed in what she was doing she jumped slightly when her cell phone gave a buzz which told her she had received a message and she just managed to keep the pick in position, deciding to look at the message as soon as she had gotten in, determined to manage the lock before doing anything else.
In comparion to the first pin, the fifth worked out a lot quicker which still meant a couple of minutes.

When the last pin was done after countless clumsy attempts Shade carefully turned the wrench - and to her great satisfaction, it worked. She grinned broadly, putting the flashlight back into her pocket. A glance at her watch told her she had really lost track of time. More than an hour. It was dark by now, but she was feeling completely content.

Shade straightened up and stretched, her muscles aching. She stepped in and closed the door behind her, leaning against it, still a huge grin on her face, chuckling into the darkness. Then she reached to switch the light on.

[Shade]

The boathouse looked as Shade had expected it to look. Empty. Clean. No traces of anyone living there. Still it felt comfortable for some reason. Only now she noticed she had not even brought any clothes or just a pyjama with her, let alone a towel or tooth brush. She had been too intent on trying the lock picks and had simply forgotten. She would go back to the mansion and get something later.

Shade walked to the front of the boat house, opening the door to the veranda, letting the warm summer air float in. She stood for a while, leant against the door frame, then suddenly remembered her cell phone. Taking it out, she opened the message. Gambit.

'You're lucky you're not here with me. And I'm unlucky I'm not there with you.'

Her self accomplished smirk from minutes before turned into an affectionate smile. She had thought about writing him a message later that day, but had pushed the thought aside. Gambit had told her a little about the guilds back at his home and it looked like there was trouble going on. With what she knew about his background by now - being stolen as a kid because of a prophecy - Shade reckoned he was important within his guild and a visit in New Orleans was most probably business, and dangerous business. No good idea to ring him up from or send messages. But he had done so first now so she assumed it was safe to reply. And apart from that, she was feeling far too pleased with herself to not let him know why.
She wrote her reply:

"I miss you. I´m staying at the boathouse. Guess who picked the lock?"

She sent the message and put the phone back into her pocket, leaving the sound switched on, then left the boat house to get a few things. She pulled out the lock picks, but left the door ajar this time.

[Shade]

Shade had only just returned to the boathouse, a small bag with pyjamas and some clothes, a towel, a tooth brush and some other things slung over her shoulder, when her cell phone buzzed again. She walked into the bedroom, tossed the bag onto the bed and took her phone out, reading the message while she walked back and to the veranda. It was Gambit again.

"You didn't!!! : )))"

Shade chuckled to herself. She could almost see him grin in front of her inner eye, that typical kid´s beam he had at times and which she liked so much.

"You bet." she replied. "The bed´s empty and boring here, too. But at least bigger. Was worth breaking in." Then she remembered something. He was probably not just in New Orleans for business but also to visit family - or supposedly these two things kind of faded into each other. But she felt reminded of something she had told him earlier. She concluded the message before she pressed the button to send it. "If you happen to see her, don´t forget to say thanks for the voodoo bracelet."

[Shade]

After sending the message, Shade walked out to the veranda, stepped out of her sneakers, rolled up her trousers and let her feet dangle into the water from the rim, looking over the dark lake. The night around her was silent, a little too silent for her right now, but her own rather careless thoughts kept her busy enough to not let her drift into too much thoughtfullness.
She spent some time on the veranda, then, as she began to feel somewhat bored, walked back in and rummaged through her bag, digging out a paperback issue of a novel she had bought a while back. The book in one hand, a bottle of coke she had nicked from the fridge of the mansion in the other, she returned outside and sat back down, crossing her legs, starting to read.

After a long while, her cell phone which was next to her now, gave a tiny buzz again.
'Ah, so it was all about the bed?'

Shade wondered what Gambit was doing now, admitting to herself she was really missing him although their little message exchange felt good.
"Of course. ;-)" she wrote back. It wasn´t about the bed of course. It was about her feeling a little lonely. Being at the boathouse felt more comfortable than staying in her dorm, because the boathouse was somehow more... she couldn´t describe it in any better words than ´more like Gambit´s territory.´ "any ideas how to easily bore myself to sleep? My favourite pillow isn´t here." She knew he would relate the comment to himself. Whenever they slept in a bed together she would cuddle up against him, sometimes prop her hand on his chest as if he were indeed a pillow.

[Shade]

In the end it had not been necessary for Shade to bore herself to sleep. She had gotten up early that day after all and by now it was pretty late, so her body and senses were demanding for sleep. When she noticed she was no longer really taking in much of what she was reading, leafing back a page for the third time, she got up, closed the veranda door, changed into her pyjamas and let herself drop on the bed, spreading her arms. The bed was a lot bigger than her own, but it didn´t feel as comfortable as she remembered it as it felt somewhat strange without Gambit´s familiar form to snuggle up against.

Staring against the wall, she didn´t even notice her lids going heavy and when Gambit´s next message arrived, she was already asleep.

'Plenty. Go fishing, or take a package of spaghetti & count them all, or write a letter 2 yourself backwards, or go pick that lock 10 more times..."

She would find that message in the morning and reply, but as of now, she was vast asleep.

[Shade]

Shade woke up late. She couldn´t remember what time it had been when she had gone to bed, probaby it had been pretty late, as when she had a look at her watch she noticed it was already past 10 in the morning.
She took a few moments to lazily remain in bed and blink at the light that was reflected by the ceiling, thinking this and that. Reaching over to the nightstand after another moment, she found that there was another message waiting for her on her cell phone. She typed her reply.

"Too late for that. Fell asleep before I could try your tips Guess I´ll jump into the lake for a swim now. Too bad you´re not here to be dragged in with me."

While typing she found that a round of swimming was indeed a nice idea. She had not taken a bikini with her to the boathouse so she shrugged inwardly and decided to use her powers and swim without one. It was unlikely anyone would run down to the boathouse to watch, but one never knew. She undressed on her way to the veranda, vanished and tipped her toes into the rather cool water.

[Shade]

When Shade climbed back onto the boat landing platform she was freezing slightly; the water was colder than she had expected so she didn´t wait too long and tapped through the boathouse, leaving only spots and puddles of water visibly along her way, walked into the bathroom and got a huge towel she found there. None of Gambit´s, he had taken all his stuff with him when he had left again, but one of those that had been there when he had arrived.

She slung it around her body and dried her hair, then walked back into the bedroom and found another message on her cell phone.

"I'm not sure I can swim, but I appreciate the hint."

She smiled and put the phone away, noticing that although maybe he wasn´t aware of it with that particular message, the term of "swimming" had a rather ambiguous notion with them. She wondered when he would be back, a part of her inwardly rolling eyes. He´s not even gone for long, don´t make a lovey dovey fuss, Shadey, she told herself. Still, she knew she´d wonder just that while he was gone.

She got dressed and left the boathouse to have breakfast in the mansion kitchen.