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Otherwise, nothing. She had considered hacking into the White House homepage, and playing Pokemon on it, but figured it was too childish. So she had turned to her favorite past time: going through the FBI database. She was in a morbid mood, so she turned to looking through the unsolved murders. Until one caught her attention.

¡¦Lee, Dr. Hung. Lee, Mrs. Xiu. Murdered, April 15, 19¡¦ Status: Unsolved.¡¦

Why in the world did the FBI have a case on her parents? Jubilee frowned, continuing to read.

¡¦It appears that Dr and Mrs Lee were murdered by the Chinese group known as the Red Dragon. The deaths match the method of execution the Dragon uses; however, there are no prints to indicate any potential suspects. All investigation has yielded no evidence that would point to the Dragon, and the Dragon claims no knowledge. I personally am suspicious of the claims, as it was due to the Red Dragon that Dr and Mrs Lee left China, finally becoming naturalized citizens. Apparently, they also have a young daughter, Jubilation, who is unaware of Dr and Mrs Lee¡¦s ¡¦crimes against China,¡¦ as the Red Dragon said so eloquently. At this time, due to lack of evidence and suspects, this case is now closed.¡¦ It had been signed by an Agent Marshall Peterson.

Jubilee closed the connection to the FBI database, her entire self shaking. She hadn¡¦t thought of her parents in a long time. She hadn¡¦t thought on how they had been murdered. She hadn¡¦t even known that the FBI had kept tabs on them.

She remembered the day she had found her parents in their home. She had returned from a shopping trip at the mall to find her parents sprawled on the living room floor, matching wounds on their throats. And then the FBI had come, and had hustled her out.

She had been forbidden from going to her parents¡¦ funerals, watched by the FBI until she was placed in a foster home.

Jubilee closed her blue eyes, her entire body shaking. She had dreamt of revenge for a long time; then, she had found Xavier¡¦s School for Gifted Youngsters. And she had forgotten about her dreams.

It was time to realize her dreams.

*****

Gambit sat on the roof, smoking in silence. His day had been the usual angst; being locked into a stalemate with Wolverine in the Danger Room, helping Storm in her greenhouse, arguing with Rogue. Always arguing with Rogue.

He was tired of arguing with her. She reveled in her martyrdom too much, and he was getting tired of it. It didn¡¦t matter to him that he couldn¡¦t touch her skin; but it mattered too much to her. She preferred being a martyr to being his girlfriend.

What the hell? Gambit narrowed his crimson eyes, watching as a slight figure emerged from Jubilee¡¦s bedroom, duffel bag in hand. Just where did that eighteen year old spitfire think she was going?

He rose easily, moving with his characteristic grace, following Jubilee¡¦s flight to the garage. And when she disappeared inside, he moved swiftly, never falling as he swung from sill to sill, dropping to the ground and running to the garage. Jubilee had opened the door as quietly as she could, mumbling something about how she was glad she had used WD-40 on the squeaky chain. Then she climbed into the Jeep, and put it into neutral, the duffel bag next to her.

That gave Gambit the chance to slip into the other Jeep. And when she rolled out of the driveway and drove off, he followed her.

*****

Jubilee glanced into the rearview mirror. Someone was following her. Someone from the Mansion. Damnit.

It wasn¡¦t Logan. He was in Japan, visiting with Yukio and Amiko. It wasn¡¦t Rogue. She¡¦d be flying overhead. It wasn¡¦t Gambit. He wouldn¡¦t make himself that obvious. It wasn¡¦t Storm. She¡¦d use fog to cover herself. It wasn¡¦t Jean or the Professor. They had Cerebro. Damnit. It was Cyclops. It had to be.

Well, she¡¦d show him. She wasn¡¦t Logan¡¦s daughter for nothing.

With a loud squeal of tires, she pressed the accelerator to the floor, and disappeared into the nighttime.

*****

"What do you mean, Jubilee and Gambit and two Jeeps are gone?" Cyclops asked in a deceptively neutral voice.

"Ah mean that Ah couldn¡¦t find the swamp rat anywhere, Cyke," Rogue answered. "An¡¦ Jubilee never showed for breakfast. An¡¦ Ah couldn¡¦t go shoppin¡¦ with ¡¦Ro because the Jeeps are gone."

"Where did they go?" Cyclops had meant it as a rhetorical question, but Rogue took offense.

"How should Ah know? Ah ain¡¦t their momma." Rogue glared at him when he snorted in disbelief.

"We cannot track either of them with Cerebro," Jean said as she walked into the War Room with Iceman and Beast. "We¡¦ve known that Gambit has low levels of telepathy, and can shield himself from us. It appears that someone taught Jubilee to do the same."

"Do we know who?" Cyclops asked as Professor Xavier entered.

"I have spoken with Ms Frost. She claims to never having taught Jubilee that particular tactic, but it appears that Jonothan Starsmore did," Xavier said calmly. "Chamber told Ms Frost that it was a simple telepathic exercise."

"Well, why don¡¦t we just take the Blackbird and see if we can spot them?" Bobby asked as he settled into his seat. "Where are all the places an eighteen year old and a twenty two year old can go?"

"Perhaps she went to California." Storm entered the room, handing Beast a sheaf of papers. "Perhaps she has decided to go home."

Beast scanned the papers, his eyes growing wide. "Oh my stars and garters¡¦" he breathed. "I had no idea that our young adult was so well versed in the intricacies of remote database breaking and decrypting."

"Um¡¦English, Hank?" Bobby nodded at his friend helplessly. "Some of us don¡¦t read Webster¡¦s for fun, y¡¦know."

Hank gave Bobby a telling look. "And some of us are unable to decipher the most basic of the English language. Plainly put, my fine frigid friend, Jubilee is a hacker." Bobby glared at Hank, obviously offended by the ¡¦frigid¡¦ adjective.

"A hacker? Jubilee?" Cyclops sighed. "What does her hacking abilities have to do with anything?"

Hank held up the papers. "It seems that she has had the experience of hacking into the database for the FBI, fearless leader. And that she has apparently uncovered the truths behind a mystery that has plagued her for most of her young life. She may have discovered who murdered her parents."

*****

Jubilee sank onto the bed of her motel room, exhausted. It had been five days since she¡¦d left Cyclops in the dust that night. And yet, she always saw the other Jeep wherever she stayed at. She¡¦d considered blowing it up, but decided that wasn¡¦t too smart. He¡¦d kill her anyway.

She had left a pointed note on the windshield one night. And had found a blue carnation on the windshield of her Jeep the next morning. So much for that idea.

She¡¦d given up, and had just let him follow her. All she wanted to do now was sleep.

*****

Gambit strolled into the motel lobby casually, studying his surroundings. The clerk behind the desk gave him a suspicious look, but went back to the paperwork she was doing.

"Pardon moi, chere, might I have a room for dis eve?"

"No vacancies," was the automatic reply.

"Den perhaps y¡¦ migh¡¦ ring de room my wife be in?"

"Payphone¡¦s right outside."

Gambit frowned, and leaned on the counter. "I canno¡¦ ring de room if I don¡¦ have de room number, non?"

The clerk, whose nametag read ¡¦Hilda,¡¦ sighed and stood. "Name?" she asked in a bored tone.

"Jubilation Lee."

Hilda flipped through the registry, then shook her head. "No Jubilation here."

"De p¡¦tite¡¦s Jeep be outside, chere." He held a hand up to the middle of his chest. "She be dis tall, wit¡¦ short black hair, very belle blue eyes¡¦"

"Oh. Her." Hilda shrugged, and handed him an in-house phone. "Julie Xavier. Room 28." She gave him an appraising look. "She runnin¡¦ from you?"

"Non. She be visitin¡¦ de folks in Nawlins. I tell her I canno¡¦ go, den I find out dat I can." He gave her his most charming smile and dialed the number.

*****

Jubilee groaned and reached for the phone. "This better be damned important," she growled.

"Bonjour, p¡¦tite. Nice evening, non?" Gambit¡¦s silky voice flowed over the lines. "Gambit stop by, non?"

Jubilee groaned again. "What the hell do you want, Cajun?" she demanded wearily. It was too late. He¡¦d already hung up.

A knock on the door caused her to return the receiver to the cradle and glare at the offending piece of furniture. When there was another knock, she stood and strode over, yanking the door open.

Gambit leaned in her doorway leisurely, studying her. Intensely. His crimson eyes traveled over her lithe figure, almost possessively. He slowly reached out and traced the outline of her full lips with his thumb, then leaned over and kissed her.

Jubilee had exactly two thoughts. One was wondering if he¡¦d lost his mind, or his sanity. The other was that no male had the right to be that good of a kisser.

He caught her when she melted against him, and moved them further into the room, kicking the door shut behind him. And when he broke off the kiss, he caught her as she almost stumbled and collapsed, placing her on the bed gently.

Gambit almost laughed. She looked so adorable, staring at him with a stunned expression.

Jubilee¡¦s face went red with anger, and she balled her hand into a fist, hitting the Cajun thief in the solar plexus. Hard. When he doubled over, she jerked away from him. "How dare you do that to me?!"

"Because dat woman Hilda thought I was gonna kill y¡¦, p¡¦tite," he gasped.

"Forget her," she growled. "I¡¦m gonna kill you." She was humiliated, burning with a mix of desire and fury. He had known that there was an audience, and furthermore, he had kissed her when he was still dating Rogue.

Gambit finally straightened up, holding his hands up placatingly. "P¡¦tite, listen to Gambit."

"Talk."

"Gambit see y¡¦ leave de Mansion, and den Gambit follow y¡¦ dese last five days. Where y¡¦ going?"

"And here I thought it was Cyke," she muttered. "I¡¦m going to California."

"Pourquoi?"

"That¡¦s none of your business."

"Do de others know dis?" At her silence, he smiled. "Gambit t¡¦ink dat mebbe he call de Mansion ¡¦n let de others know, non?"

She tackled him as soon as he headed towards her phone. "Don¡¦t you dare, Cajun. I¡¦m going to California for reasons that are my own, and I don¡¦t need a chaperone!"

Gambit smiled and looked up at her. "P¡¦tite, much as Gambit like dis position, we need t¡¦ talk first. Fun be later." He was rewarded with another jab to the stomach.

"You¡¦re not funny, Gumbo." Jubilee rolled off him and sat up, anger filling her blue eyes. "What do you want?"

"Y¡¦ be goin¡¦ t¡¦ Nawlins, p¡¦tite. Pourquoi?"

"I¡¦m stopping through. Sightseeing and all." She kept her tone clipped and curt.

"Uh huh."

She threw her hands up in aggravation. "Fine. I was going to talk to the Assassins¡¦ Guild about the latest in weaponry, and I thought I¡¦d stop in and see your dad about what I can use to break and enter too!" That was true, but she¡¦d deliberately kept her tone sarcastic.

"Pourquoi?"

"Damnit, don¡¦t you ever stop asking why?"

"Non."

She threw him a dirty look, then threw her manila envelope at him. The ones with the FBI printouts. "Read away, then."

*****

"Ah swear Ah¡¦m gonna kill that swamp rat soon as he gets back!"

"Why would you do such a thing, my friend?" Hank looked up as Rogue paced his lab impatiently. "Am I not correct in believing that the relationship is over?"

"She¡¦s just mad that Remy left before she could demonstrate her newfound abilities," Bobby stated around a mouthful of cotton candy.

"Bobby Drake, Ah¡¦m gonna kill you right now." Rogue advanced on him threateningly.

"No you won¡¦t," he replied calmly. "Because then you won¡¦t have anyone to blame when my ghost pulls pranks around you." He swiveled his head to look at Hank. "And she wonders why Remy left. All she ever says is ¡¦Remy, Ah can¡¦t touch you, but Ah love you. Today, anyway.¡¦ When what she should be saying is, ¡¦Remy, you hunka hunka burnin¡¦ love. Take me now, make me feel like a woman!¡¦"

"Bobby¡¦" Rogue reached to strangle him. She didn¡¦t intend to kill him. Just to hurt him. A lot. Then she¡¦d kill him.

"Oh my, look at the time. Gotta jet!" Bobby shot out the door. Rogue was hot on his heels.

"Oh my stars and garters¡¦" Hank sighed.

*****

Jubilee¡¦s head was spinning. Gambit had not only offered to not interfere in her game of vengeance, he had even offered his help. He had the connections in New Orleans. He had a friend in Arizona who could shelter them, if need be. He could get the papers they needed to go to China.

"Whose the friend in Phoenix?" she asked suspiciously. She had no problems with anyone else he¡¦d mentioned, but he¡¦d never mentioned having a friend in Phoenix, Arizona.

Gambit gave her a smug smile. "De name¡¦s not important, p¡¦tite. If we need de help, den y¡¦ meet dis friend, non?" He held up a hand when she started to protest. "P¡¦tite, Remy trust dis friend with his life. Dey have connections dat no one else has, ¡¦n not even dis Red Dragon mess with dem."

"Why not?"

"Because dey be protected by de White Dragon. Dey don¡¦ mess with de Red Dragon, ¡¦n de Red Dragon don¡¦ mess with dem."

"The White Dragon?"

"De Red Dragon is de Chinese gang dat shakes de country, non? Well, de White Dragon is de Japanese gang dat does de same. Dey don¡¦ mess with each other."

"Oh." Jubilee sighed and stretched out on one of the beds. "I¡¦m gonna get some sleep. ¡¦Night, Gumbo."

"G¡¦nigh¡¦, p¡¦tite."

*****

The next morning was dark and overcast. Gambit stumbled outside, exhausted from the night of watch. He and Jubilee had agreed that she would do a majority of the driving, while he slept. And that they would call the Mansion after they left, to have the rest of the team come and get the other Jeep.

The morning was unnaturally quiet, and he couldn¡¦t shake the feeling that he was being watched. Even as he scanned the grounds, he saw nothing. So he shrugged and headed towards the lobby, intending on settling the bill with Hilda.

The stench of blood assaulted his senses when he pushed the glass door open. He couldn¡¦t see anyone - or anything - that would produce so much blood. On the counter was a red rose, dotted with scarlet blood.

Gambit found Hilda. Or rather, what was left of her. She lay spread eagle behind the counter, her eyes wide with surprise. Her throat had been neatly sliced, the backs of her hands shot through. And it looked as though her death was recent.

He cursed loudly and shot out the doors. Jubilee chose that moment to emerge from their room and threw their bags into the back of her Jeep. That was when he saw it. As soon as Jubilee opened the door, the bomb would go off.

He sprinted across the lot as fast as he could, knowing he wouldn¡¦t reach her in time. Jubilee hesitated, her eyes distant, then she turned to look straight at him with a broad smile. Then she opened the door.

The following explosion rocked the quiet dawn with a deafening noise.

-Finis Chapter 1-