Louisiana Lowdown - Warning Signs
Feb. 20th, 2011 03:34 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
xp_daytripper posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
xp_logsSaying goodbye to Tante, Amanda receives a message for Marie-Ange, in usual Tante fashion.
OOC: Thanks to![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
dexfarkin for socking Tante for this log and the previous one.
It was funny, Amanda reflected as she watched Nico vanish into the brush with their bags, lugging them to the car, no matter how many times she had to tell someone goodbye, it never really was easy. Especially when she had a deep feeling that Tante might not have so many years left. The old woman's state had shocked Amanda to her core and the blonde witch found the thought of Tante no longer being around more upsetting than the death of her own mother.
"Thanks, again, for seeing us," she said at last to the old woman next to her. "It means a lot."
"It should." She said, leaning on her cane and watching the leaves rustle until still. "Dere's evil in dat one. Deep. Dat one gonwa know de Baron in her time, for certain."
"I know." It hurt to admit it, but Amanda knew she couldn't protect Nico from her hertiage. Sooner or later, Nico would have to face Arcana again, and all Amanda could do was her best to make sure Nico had a reason to come back from it. The same as Remy had for her. "She's got a good heart as well."
Tante merely grunted, eyes still tracking the movement in the brush. After a moment, she turned and walked heavily back towards the steps of her shack. She had always been a big woman; not exactly fat, but more built on a slightly larger scale, and her gravitis had added weight to that. Now, while the deep respect remained, she seemed more human; frailer when she moved. Amanda had seen first hand her wield power in New Orleans, and couldn't find that woman in the one painfully climbing the steps.
It was also hard to not offer to help her, either, but Amanda had a feeling Tante's good right hand would still sting as it clipped her for ear for impertinance. "Tante..." she began, not sure what to say but hoping the houdon would pick up on her concern. "Are you... okay, out here? You seem..." Old.
"Old? Dat what ja want ta ask?" She reached the top of the steps and settled herself contentedly on her front porch bench. The cane was leaned close at hand as the woman leaned back. "Dis house is old, childe. De trees round us dat it made from even older. De swamp in which dey grew, older yet. Dis whole place is as old as time, and ja wonder why Tante seem de same?"
"You never seemed like that before?" The reply popped out before she could stop it and she winced. "I mean, I know you and this place are connected, you just seem different these days. It takes some getting used to."
"Dis is jus' one scrap of de bayou, childe. Dere's only so much dat an ol' woman can take from it, 'till she taking from de very life it needs to live. Non, Tante don need to do dat. All t'ings have dere time, and come soon, it be mine." She laughed softly, hints of her old, boisterious whoops hidden in it. "But not yet. All creatures have dere time, ja know. Dere's one more thing t' do before mine."
She'd known what Tante was going to say, but it still hurt, deeply and unexpectedly. Amanda hadn't realised how much Tante had become a rock in her life, scariness and all. Then again, most of the important people in her life were terrifying, one way or another. "Anything I can help with?" she asked, trying to make light as she usually did when deeper feelings were at stake.
"Not unless ja want t' feel Tante's hand 'cross ja mouth. Everything has a time t' begin and a time t' end, and dat's what has to be." She said, turning to glare at her. "Anything else is de path of Papa Ghede and de death loa."
"That wasn't what I... yes, Tante," Amanda said meekly, knowing better than to protest she hadn't meant that. She looked up - Nico would be back soon and it would be time to go. "Will I see you again? Before your time, you know, comes?"
"Possible. Ja of all people should know dat things are... fluid in dis place." She patted Amanda's knee. "Tante not gone yet, childe. Been a long time living, and I don fancy dat dance wit' de Baron any sooner den I have ta."
Amanda chuckled despite herself. "Maybe by the time I'm as old as you, I'll stop asking dumb questions," she said with a small smile, briefly laying her own hand over Tante's. "We should get going. Many miles to travel, promises to keep, all that jazz."
"You be safe, childe. And tell dat Marie-Ange dat what she been through only de beginning of her new journey." The old woman said, cryptically.
"Angie? But Angie's not with us any..." Amanda went still. She knew there was more here than Tante was saying. "It's time, isn't it? For her to come home?"
Tante Mattie merely pulled her cane closer so she could fold both hands atop it and lean her chin on them.
"Thanks, Tante." Amanda was on her feet and clattering down the stairs, pulling her phone out of her jacket even as Nico emerged from the woods. "Come on, Grasshopper, we've got a pit stop to make," she told the bemused girl as the phone picked up. "Remy, 's me. Angie needs us."
Remy, Amanda and Nico go to the Forger's Guild to rescue Marie-Ange.
A block or two from the Forger's Guild, Amanda pulled over, letting the car idle. "Your stop," she said to Remy, in the back seat. "We'll head around the back and I'll find a safe place to leave Nico. Give me about... ten minutes? I can't 'port in New Orleans so well or I'd just pop in."
"Take you time. Remy have a feeling dis is going to be a long conversation." LeBeau said, unfolding himself from the back seat and stepping out. He hadn't intended to go after Marie-Ange, but now things were starting to interact strangely, and if he didn't step in now, the New Orleans guilds could find themselves in the midst of yet another war that they couldn't afford.
Nico was silent. Like, very silent. So silent it was odd for Nico. For almost a year she had wondered just what was Amanda doing every time she was out somewhere 'working', and while she knew it wasn't precisely what she was doing at the moment...it was close, closer to whatever she had imagined before. Hence the silence, since Nico didn't want to ruin anything, and at the same time, wanted to see what was going to happen.
"He is going to be alright, right?"
"Remy? He'll be fine." Well, hopefully he'd be fine - the Guilds were always a bit of wild card to deal with. She watched as the Cajun loped down the street, trenchcoat flapping in the wind that had picked up, and pulled away from the curb. "Right, this is where you get your marching orders, Grasshopper. You're staying in the car and waiting for us. No ifs, ands or buts. If the school knew I was taking you on a job, they'd have my guts for garters."
Nico sighed, already well aware that there was no chance she would get to see what Amanda and Remy were going to do in there. She didn't want to be in there anyway, as she knew that things could get messy. But because of that very same reason...alright, maybe she did want to be in there. She did but she didn't. Nico sighed again. "Stay put, work on my nails, wait for you guys. Got it." A beat. "Be careful, alright? I still think you are some sort of secret agent of Who Knows what kind of secret organization kind of thing...but just be careful. Really."
Amanda flashed a brief, almost brash, grin at her student, even as she turned the corner and took them past the Guild building. "I will, Grasshopper. Trust me, I'm good at this."
Around the back of the Forger's Guild, Amanda found a parking space among two or three other cars and pulled in, nose facing out. "Stay low," she cautioned Nico. "That's the back door over there, if anyone comes out, don't let them see you."
***
There were guards on the door, but they didn't try and stop LeBeau as he stride past them. Even if he was no longer Pere LeBeau, or the representative of Tante Mattie, Remy had a reputation on the street, and a lot of history to back it up. It limited the number of bad decisions on the part of the opposition, which made the Cajun happy. It was always better to avoid a fight if possible.
The man behind the computer terminal in the lobby stopped his rapid typing at Remy's appearance, and quietly offered something to drink while he waited for his contact to be ready. They sat for a long moment, while another furious burst of typing went on, until he was finally pointed towards a door and instructed to meet his contact there. The possibility of a trap did exist, but Remy forced it out of his mind. If they wanted him dead, they'd have their chance regardless of what he did. Instead, he pushed open the door and walked into a small, but expensively appointed office and nodded at his contact: Zoe Ishihara.
***
Amanda approached the back door casually, just another tourist in New Orleans, a little under the weather from too much partying in Bourbon Street. Slightly unsteady, she yanked open the door, to find a man in a business suit obviously guarding it. "Hey, nice suit!" she exclaimed, accent changing to something more twangily American, Texan maybe. "Is this my hotel? I know it's around here somewhere..."
"I'm sorry, miss, this is a private residence..." the man began, taking Amanda's arm to usher her back outside. The witch raised her cupped palm to her mouth and blew - there was nothing in her hand, but the air was suddenly filled with the scent of magnolias and hot, humid summer afternoons and the pungent smell of marijuana. The man blinked once or twice and then slumped against Amanda's shoulder. Grunting slightly, the witch guided him back outside, leaving him slumped, snoring gently, against the wall. Looking back towards where her car was parked, she flashed a brief grin, and then disappeared back inside.
***
"I never imagined you'd be caught up in something like this, Remy. It doesn't suit Gambit." Zoe said, remaining seated behind her desk. She was young for her position, barely thirty with delicate Japanese features. Her short black hair and carefully tailored suit made her easily mistakable for a corporate lawyer, and certainly her mind worked that way. But the young woman was the best computer hacker the Guild had ever produced, and her rise to power had been based on those preternatural skills. They'd been allies for years, even friends at times. But now, there was none of that history to be found in her eyes.
"So you say."
"Sending in one girl to do your dirty work? I hope you've already gotten bored with fucking her, Gambit. Because she's not-"
"Zoe, stop." Remy said, and to Ishihara's own amazement, it worked. "Dere's a lot of things dat need to be said right now, and stupid threat jus' goin' t' get in de way of dem."
The muscles on the side of her jaw spasmed, but she said nothing, only nodding despite the furt she felt.
"I did some digging. De men sent after you brother are connected to a group dat had ties to Strucker Medical Sciences. Dat group, among other things, has been secretly and heavily involved in de weaponization of mutants and mutant abilities for years." LeBeau pulled a data stick out of his pocket and tossed it over to her. "You'll see de expenditures in dat. Dey had a lab ready to harvest you brother once dey took him and see what dey could have done wit' his power."
Zoe caught the stick in front of her, looking at it but not putting it into her computer yet. Remy knew the conflict she was facing. Zoe and Shirow Ishihara had been the children of a widowed mid-level Yakuza boss. He had decided to leave the Yakuza following his wife's death, but elements in the gang believed he was likely to talk to the authorities, and marked him for death. He had made it as far as New Orleans in secret before they caught up with him. The Guilds had a tradition of 'adopting' a certain number of orphans every year, placing them in foster homes loyal to the Guilds and training them for a future in their organization. When Zoe's talents had become obvious, she had been able to leverage them into buying her brother out of the Guild influence, and helping him leave New Orleans for medical school and a career. When he'd returned, she purposefully had little to do with his life, to protect him, but he was the last representative of her family.
"How did they find him?"
"Belladonna. She sold his file on de open market."
***
It was a cliche, but the maid's uniform Amanda had 'borrowed' from the kitchen area downstairs had the benefit of making her part of the scenery. She couldn't exactly go singing and dancing through the halls unchallenged, but she could quietly work her way upstairs. The fact she'd pulled the front of the black dress down to show extra cleavage didn't hurt - when their eyes were glued to your tits, they didn't pay a lot of attention to your face.
Now of course, the trick was to find where Marie-Ange was being held. A quick peek showed Amanda an empty study and she slipped inside, closing the door behind her. On the desk, she quickly pulled out a floor plan of the building... and a single Tarot card, one from one of Angie's many sets that Amanda had swiped at one point, just in case.
"C'mon Big Easy, give me a nudge," she murmured, holding the card in one hand and spreading her other flat above the floor plan. "Eeny, meeny, miny, mo..."
A single greenish spark appeared on the floorplan, a small room, not much more than a broom closet, really, on the top floor. The witch grinned, stuffing the card back into the pocket of her apron.
"Hang on, Frenchie, here comes the cavalry."
***
Marie-Ange certainly was not going to take having been caught lying down. At least not figuratively, even if she was forced to take it lying down literally. The zipties, that she could understand. She would have zip-tied herself had she been in the same position that the Forger's Guild members had been in. But being stashed on the floor of a supply closet while they figured out what to do with her? That was just insulting.
She had already worked the duct tape off her mouth. A shelf and minutes of effort took care of that, even if her face now felt sticky and irritated. Just being able to breath easier made the rest of everything else she would have to do to get out feel a little more possible.
***
"That fucking cow. You let her go, Gambit! You let her-"
"Guild justice, Zoe. You know de law just as well as I do, or would you prefer a constant state of war?" Remy shook his head. "You knew dat one day, someone was going to finally find out what Shirow could do, and when it happened, someone would be coming."
"I never expected it to be your people."
"She didn't come to use Shirow. Fact is dat trying to find 'nother solution 'bout cost her everything dat she had."
"He's my fucking brother, Gambit! It should have come to me. I could have kept him safe!"
"At de cost of de whole Guild? Because dat's what de end result of dat would have been, Zoe. Not mercenaries and bounty-hunters. Instead, paramilitary forces and people like me, who would be happy to firebomb half of de city into ash if dat's what took to get to him. You are de Guildmaster here. You people have to come first."
"You don't understand."
"I do. Too well." Remy said, coldly. "I'm walking out of here wit' Marie-Ange, Zoe."
"Fuck you. The bitch stays and goes on trial."
"She's not bound by Guild law."
"Doesn't matter. Who would notice one more body on this night?"
"I would."
"He. Was. My. BROTHER!" She screamed at him.
"Oui, and dat's why you so mad at her. Because she did what you couldn't bring yourself to do."
***
Up on the upper levels, it was trickier to remain unseen - it was obviously more of the business end of things. Amanda wasn't sure if she had the juice to sleep spell every person she came across, but she did have the power for a kind of glamour, one that enabled her to blend with her surroundings. It worked better out on the streets, but a city was a city, even if New Orleans had a prior claim on its power and at least it wasn't fucking Wyoming.
Freezing against the wall yet again as two more Guild members walked past, oblivious to the small blonde witch, Amanda let out a slow breath and crept forward yet again. There, that was the door, and off course there was someone guarding it. A woman, which meant the usual "you want to have a bit of fun?" distraction approach wasn't guaranteed to work.
***
At first, Marie-Ange thought the thump and muffled grunt was a certain indication that she had run out of time. She had not managed to get the zip-tie off her wrists yet - it was not budging, and she hadn't been quite ready to start trying to deglove herself just to get the damn thing loose.
Not that she was just going to go to whatever fate Zoe Ishihara had planned quietly. Even hands bound behind her back, Marie-Ange had resources, and the first thing she had done once her mouth was free was to use her teeth and tongue to bunch the sleeve of her shirt up past her tattoo.
There was another thump and a warm wind curled up under the door, bringing with it the smells of bayou and booze, cheap perfume and jasmine, cigarettes and spices. The doorknob fell off and clattered to the floor, the door opening to reveal a grinning witch in a maid's uniform.
"Room service!"
***
So there was Nico, sitting, on the car. In silence. Kind of slouching a little. Not terrified at all, what are you talking about? She was magically apt to deal with anything that came her way (she hoped) and if everything went right, she wouldn't even need to move until Amanda came back, and that would be soon, she hoped. Alright, maybe Nico was a liiiittle nervous, because it was all dark and silent and she hadn't been in a situation like that since she had to sleep on alleyways, which hadn't been too nice once you get to think about it. Peeking out of the window, Nico hoped her mentor and Remy were alright. It was a rather silent hoping she did, of course.
Sudden activity over at the door caught her attention. Several men came out, with varying expressions of concern and annoyance, and briefly spoke together before starting to spread out, all facing the back entrance. Street lights gleamed off gun muzzles.
Okay, something was certainly not right at all. Nico watched with eyes wide open the group of people that wasn't supposed to be there. With guns. Guns that most certainly were going to be used. How did she know? Well, unless they were going to play hide and seek and poke at each other with them, taking cover before shooting was the most likely option. And who they wanted to shoot wasn't that hard to imagine. Taking a deep breath, Nico tried not to panic, because that wouldn't help at all. Of course, she didn't get any useful idea of what to do. She had to make sure they were going to stay there, and perhaps find a way to communicate with Amanda. Or a way to make them leave...without getting herself killed. Frowning, Nico kept an eye on them. Suddenly sentinel duty sucked.
It started to suck a lot more when a dude (with a gun) started to make his way towards the car. Nico couldn't help but imagine for a second what the man was probably seeing; a somewhat short Asian-looking-goth sitting in front of the steering wheel looking at him with a mix of caution and fear. Or something, Nico decided it didn't matter much because the moment the guy got too close she wouldn't have any chance of getting rid of him, or the others; yep, she was going to get rid of them now. So when the man was close enough, Nico hit the gas, measuring enough speed to surprise the dude, bump him and throw him over the hood and to the ground after it. Making the engine roar, Nico drove at the other men, trying to be as noisy and scary as she could, and what do you know? It actually worked. The men, taken by surprise, scattered and left the place in a rush.
A few minutes later, a nerve-wracked Nico was parked right where she was before, ready to go all magical on whatever moved that wasn't supposed to be moving. Sentinel duty sucked ass..
***
Out was easier than in. Everyone was either already asleep, thanks to Amanda's spell, or nowhere to be found. Neither woman was going to question their good fortune, and made for the back door at a run, once Amanda had snipped the zipties around Marie-Ange's wrists with a set of toenail clippers she'd found in the pocket of the maid's uniform.
They clattered out the back door, half-prepared for a fight, only to see the car, with a fresh set of dents on its front bumper and hood, and Nico, drumming her fingers impatiently on the steering wheel.
"I think I like your car service..." Marie-Ange said, after she and Amanda had all but leapt for the car.
"I'm not sure I do." It was hard not to wince at the damage to her beloved car, but Amanda wasn't about to complain about Nico's quick thinking saving their arses. "Get us the fuck out of here, Grasshopper."
***
"Don't you--"
"Enough, Zoe. You knew dat one day, Shirow's powers were going to leak to de wrong people. Dat someone outside of de Guild was going to sell off de information to de wrong people. You knew dat, and still, you pretended dat Belladonna wouldn't do it. Or that he was so normal dat no one would believe it and dey'd leave him alone." Remy snapped, cutting through her anger. "He was your brother, Zoe, and you left it to someone else to do what had to be done so dat you could blame dem instead."
Zoe had gone sheet white, and blindly reached for the desk, leaning against it. She was silent for a long time, before finally looking up at him through a gaze made of ashes. "All I wanted was to get him free of all of this, Remy." She said, finally using his name. "He deserved better."
"I know. But dis was what had to be faced, Zoe. Release Marie-Ange. Now." Remy's voice was soft, but shod in steel. Finally, she nodded and raised her cellphone.
"Let the girl-- what? She--? No, never mind. Stand down security." She dropped the phone on the desk. "They just found her missing and a couple of unconscious guards. You sent people in the second you walked through the door, didn't you." Remy nodded and she shook her head. "I should have known. What would you have done if it hadn't worked."
"Torn dis place apart and every person in Remy's way until I found dem. Dese are my people, Zoe. My responsibility."
She nodded, wiping her face. "I don't think we have any further business. But, Gambit-" He paused. "whatever we had before is over. Everything is now strictly business, and strictly what is in the best interests of my Guild. Do you understand that, you son of a bitch?"
"Oui. Remy is sorry 'bout Shirow."
"Yeah." She waved him off. "Yeah."
Remy turned his back and walked out of the office, leaving her alone with the cored out feelings of loss. The hallways were empty, and he walked alone out into the New Orleans night. Another battle in a war that no one could even define, and more losses as a result. He shook off the black feeling. Somewhere nearby, his team was waiting, whole again for the first time in months, and like Zoe, Remy's first priority had to be his people. He lit a cigarette and walked on, never looking back at what they left behind.
OOC: Thanks to
dexfarkin for socking Tante for this log and the previous one.It was funny, Amanda reflected as she watched Nico vanish into the brush with their bags, lugging them to the car, no matter how many times she had to tell someone goodbye, it never really was easy. Especially when she had a deep feeling that Tante might not have so many years left. The old woman's state had shocked Amanda to her core and the blonde witch found the thought of Tante no longer being around more upsetting than the death of her own mother.
"Thanks, again, for seeing us," she said at last to the old woman next to her. "It means a lot."
"It should." She said, leaning on her cane and watching the leaves rustle until still. "Dere's evil in dat one. Deep. Dat one gonwa know de Baron in her time, for certain."
"I know." It hurt to admit it, but Amanda knew she couldn't protect Nico from her hertiage. Sooner or later, Nico would have to face Arcana again, and all Amanda could do was her best to make sure Nico had a reason to come back from it. The same as Remy had for her. "She's got a good heart as well."
Tante merely grunted, eyes still tracking the movement in the brush. After a moment, she turned and walked heavily back towards the steps of her shack. She had always been a big woman; not exactly fat, but more built on a slightly larger scale, and her gravitis had added weight to that. Now, while the deep respect remained, she seemed more human; frailer when she moved. Amanda had seen first hand her wield power in New Orleans, and couldn't find that woman in the one painfully climbing the steps.
It was also hard to not offer to help her, either, but Amanda had a feeling Tante's good right hand would still sting as it clipped her for ear for impertinance. "Tante..." she began, not sure what to say but hoping the houdon would pick up on her concern. "Are you... okay, out here? You seem..." Old.
"Old? Dat what ja want ta ask?" She reached the top of the steps and settled herself contentedly on her front porch bench. The cane was leaned close at hand as the woman leaned back. "Dis house is old, childe. De trees round us dat it made from even older. De swamp in which dey grew, older yet. Dis whole place is as old as time, and ja wonder why Tante seem de same?"
"You never seemed like that before?" The reply popped out before she could stop it and she winced. "I mean, I know you and this place are connected, you just seem different these days. It takes some getting used to."
"Dis is jus' one scrap of de bayou, childe. Dere's only so much dat an ol' woman can take from it, 'till she taking from de very life it needs to live. Non, Tante don need to do dat. All t'ings have dere time, and come soon, it be mine." She laughed softly, hints of her old, boisterious whoops hidden in it. "But not yet. All creatures have dere time, ja know. Dere's one more thing t' do before mine."
She'd known what Tante was going to say, but it still hurt, deeply and unexpectedly. Amanda hadn't realised how much Tante had become a rock in her life, scariness and all. Then again, most of the important people in her life were terrifying, one way or another. "Anything I can help with?" she asked, trying to make light as she usually did when deeper feelings were at stake.
"Not unless ja want t' feel Tante's hand 'cross ja mouth. Everything has a time t' begin and a time t' end, and dat's what has to be." She said, turning to glare at her. "Anything else is de path of Papa Ghede and de death loa."
"That wasn't what I... yes, Tante," Amanda said meekly, knowing better than to protest she hadn't meant that. She looked up - Nico would be back soon and it would be time to go. "Will I see you again? Before your time, you know, comes?"
"Possible. Ja of all people should know dat things are... fluid in dis place." She patted Amanda's knee. "Tante not gone yet, childe. Been a long time living, and I don fancy dat dance wit' de Baron any sooner den I have ta."
Amanda chuckled despite herself. "Maybe by the time I'm as old as you, I'll stop asking dumb questions," she said with a small smile, briefly laying her own hand over Tante's. "We should get going. Many miles to travel, promises to keep, all that jazz."
"You be safe, childe. And tell dat Marie-Ange dat what she been through only de beginning of her new journey." The old woman said, cryptically.
"Angie? But Angie's not with us any..." Amanda went still. She knew there was more here than Tante was saying. "It's time, isn't it? For her to come home?"
Tante Mattie merely pulled her cane closer so she could fold both hands atop it and lean her chin on them.
"Thanks, Tante." Amanda was on her feet and clattering down the stairs, pulling her phone out of her jacket even as Nico emerged from the woods. "Come on, Grasshopper, we've got a pit stop to make," she told the bemused girl as the phone picked up. "Remy, 's me. Angie needs us."
Remy, Amanda and Nico go to the Forger's Guild to rescue Marie-Ange.
A block or two from the Forger's Guild, Amanda pulled over, letting the car idle. "Your stop," she said to Remy, in the back seat. "We'll head around the back and I'll find a safe place to leave Nico. Give me about... ten minutes? I can't 'port in New Orleans so well or I'd just pop in."
"Take you time. Remy have a feeling dis is going to be a long conversation." LeBeau said, unfolding himself from the back seat and stepping out. He hadn't intended to go after Marie-Ange, but now things were starting to interact strangely, and if he didn't step in now, the New Orleans guilds could find themselves in the midst of yet another war that they couldn't afford.
Nico was silent. Like, very silent. So silent it was odd for Nico. For almost a year she had wondered just what was Amanda doing every time she was out somewhere 'working', and while she knew it wasn't precisely what she was doing at the moment...it was close, closer to whatever she had imagined before. Hence the silence, since Nico didn't want to ruin anything, and at the same time, wanted to see what was going to happen.
"He is going to be alright, right?"
"Remy? He'll be fine." Well, hopefully he'd be fine - the Guilds were always a bit of wild card to deal with. She watched as the Cajun loped down the street, trenchcoat flapping in the wind that had picked up, and pulled away from the curb. "Right, this is where you get your marching orders, Grasshopper. You're staying in the car and waiting for us. No ifs, ands or buts. If the school knew I was taking you on a job, they'd have my guts for garters."
Nico sighed, already well aware that there was no chance she would get to see what Amanda and Remy were going to do in there. She didn't want to be in there anyway, as she knew that things could get messy. But because of that very same reason...alright, maybe she did want to be in there. She did but she didn't. Nico sighed again. "Stay put, work on my nails, wait for you guys. Got it." A beat. "Be careful, alright? I still think you are some sort of secret agent of Who Knows what kind of secret organization kind of thing...but just be careful. Really."
Amanda flashed a brief, almost brash, grin at her student, even as she turned the corner and took them past the Guild building. "I will, Grasshopper. Trust me, I'm good at this."
Around the back of the Forger's Guild, Amanda found a parking space among two or three other cars and pulled in, nose facing out. "Stay low," she cautioned Nico. "That's the back door over there, if anyone comes out, don't let them see you."
***
There were guards on the door, but they didn't try and stop LeBeau as he stride past them. Even if he was no longer Pere LeBeau, or the representative of Tante Mattie, Remy had a reputation on the street, and a lot of history to back it up. It limited the number of bad decisions on the part of the opposition, which made the Cajun happy. It was always better to avoid a fight if possible.
The man behind the computer terminal in the lobby stopped his rapid typing at Remy's appearance, and quietly offered something to drink while he waited for his contact to be ready. They sat for a long moment, while another furious burst of typing went on, until he was finally pointed towards a door and instructed to meet his contact there. The possibility of a trap did exist, but Remy forced it out of his mind. If they wanted him dead, they'd have their chance regardless of what he did. Instead, he pushed open the door and walked into a small, but expensively appointed office and nodded at his contact: Zoe Ishihara.
***
Amanda approached the back door casually, just another tourist in New Orleans, a little under the weather from too much partying in Bourbon Street. Slightly unsteady, she yanked open the door, to find a man in a business suit obviously guarding it. "Hey, nice suit!" she exclaimed, accent changing to something more twangily American, Texan maybe. "Is this my hotel? I know it's around here somewhere..."
"I'm sorry, miss, this is a private residence..." the man began, taking Amanda's arm to usher her back outside. The witch raised her cupped palm to her mouth and blew - there was nothing in her hand, but the air was suddenly filled with the scent of magnolias and hot, humid summer afternoons and the pungent smell of marijuana. The man blinked once or twice and then slumped against Amanda's shoulder. Grunting slightly, the witch guided him back outside, leaving him slumped, snoring gently, against the wall. Looking back towards where her car was parked, she flashed a brief grin, and then disappeared back inside.
***
"I never imagined you'd be caught up in something like this, Remy. It doesn't suit Gambit." Zoe said, remaining seated behind her desk. She was young for her position, barely thirty with delicate Japanese features. Her short black hair and carefully tailored suit made her easily mistakable for a corporate lawyer, and certainly her mind worked that way. But the young woman was the best computer hacker the Guild had ever produced, and her rise to power had been based on those preternatural skills. They'd been allies for years, even friends at times. But now, there was none of that history to be found in her eyes.
"So you say."
"Sending in one girl to do your dirty work? I hope you've already gotten bored with fucking her, Gambit. Because she's not-"
"Zoe, stop." Remy said, and to Ishihara's own amazement, it worked. "Dere's a lot of things dat need to be said right now, and stupid threat jus' goin' t' get in de way of dem."
The muscles on the side of her jaw spasmed, but she said nothing, only nodding despite the furt she felt.
"I did some digging. De men sent after you brother are connected to a group dat had ties to Strucker Medical Sciences. Dat group, among other things, has been secretly and heavily involved in de weaponization of mutants and mutant abilities for years." LeBeau pulled a data stick out of his pocket and tossed it over to her. "You'll see de expenditures in dat. Dey had a lab ready to harvest you brother once dey took him and see what dey could have done wit' his power."
Zoe caught the stick in front of her, looking at it but not putting it into her computer yet. Remy knew the conflict she was facing. Zoe and Shirow Ishihara had been the children of a widowed mid-level Yakuza boss. He had decided to leave the Yakuza following his wife's death, but elements in the gang believed he was likely to talk to the authorities, and marked him for death. He had made it as far as New Orleans in secret before they caught up with him. The Guilds had a tradition of 'adopting' a certain number of orphans every year, placing them in foster homes loyal to the Guilds and training them for a future in their organization. When Zoe's talents had become obvious, she had been able to leverage them into buying her brother out of the Guild influence, and helping him leave New Orleans for medical school and a career. When he'd returned, she purposefully had little to do with his life, to protect him, but he was the last representative of her family.
"How did they find him?"
"Belladonna. She sold his file on de open market."
***
It was a cliche, but the maid's uniform Amanda had 'borrowed' from the kitchen area downstairs had the benefit of making her part of the scenery. She couldn't exactly go singing and dancing through the halls unchallenged, but she could quietly work her way upstairs. The fact she'd pulled the front of the black dress down to show extra cleavage didn't hurt - when their eyes were glued to your tits, they didn't pay a lot of attention to your face.
Now of course, the trick was to find where Marie-Ange was being held. A quick peek showed Amanda an empty study and she slipped inside, closing the door behind her. On the desk, she quickly pulled out a floor plan of the building... and a single Tarot card, one from one of Angie's many sets that Amanda had swiped at one point, just in case.
"C'mon Big Easy, give me a nudge," she murmured, holding the card in one hand and spreading her other flat above the floor plan. "Eeny, meeny, miny, mo..."
A single greenish spark appeared on the floorplan, a small room, not much more than a broom closet, really, on the top floor. The witch grinned, stuffing the card back into the pocket of her apron.
"Hang on, Frenchie, here comes the cavalry."
***
Marie-Ange certainly was not going to take having been caught lying down. At least not figuratively, even if she was forced to take it lying down literally. The zipties, that she could understand. She would have zip-tied herself had she been in the same position that the Forger's Guild members had been in. But being stashed on the floor of a supply closet while they figured out what to do with her? That was just insulting.
She had already worked the duct tape off her mouth. A shelf and minutes of effort took care of that, even if her face now felt sticky and irritated. Just being able to breath easier made the rest of everything else she would have to do to get out feel a little more possible.
***
"That fucking cow. You let her go, Gambit! You let her-"
"Guild justice, Zoe. You know de law just as well as I do, or would you prefer a constant state of war?" Remy shook his head. "You knew dat one day, someone was going to finally find out what Shirow could do, and when it happened, someone would be coming."
"I never expected it to be your people."
"She didn't come to use Shirow. Fact is dat trying to find 'nother solution 'bout cost her everything dat she had."
"He's my fucking brother, Gambit! It should have come to me. I could have kept him safe!"
"At de cost of de whole Guild? Because dat's what de end result of dat would have been, Zoe. Not mercenaries and bounty-hunters. Instead, paramilitary forces and people like me, who would be happy to firebomb half of de city into ash if dat's what took to get to him. You are de Guildmaster here. You people have to come first."
"You don't understand."
"I do. Too well." Remy said, coldly. "I'm walking out of here wit' Marie-Ange, Zoe."
"Fuck you. The bitch stays and goes on trial."
"She's not bound by Guild law."
"Doesn't matter. Who would notice one more body on this night?"
"I would."
"He. Was. My. BROTHER!" She screamed at him.
"Oui, and dat's why you so mad at her. Because she did what you couldn't bring yourself to do."
***
Up on the upper levels, it was trickier to remain unseen - it was obviously more of the business end of things. Amanda wasn't sure if she had the juice to sleep spell every person she came across, but she did have the power for a kind of glamour, one that enabled her to blend with her surroundings. It worked better out on the streets, but a city was a city, even if New Orleans had a prior claim on its power and at least it wasn't fucking Wyoming.
Freezing against the wall yet again as two more Guild members walked past, oblivious to the small blonde witch, Amanda let out a slow breath and crept forward yet again. There, that was the door, and off course there was someone guarding it. A woman, which meant the usual "you want to have a bit of fun?" distraction approach wasn't guaranteed to work.
***
At first, Marie-Ange thought the thump and muffled grunt was a certain indication that she had run out of time. She had not managed to get the zip-tie off her wrists yet - it was not budging, and she hadn't been quite ready to start trying to deglove herself just to get the damn thing loose.
Not that she was just going to go to whatever fate Zoe Ishihara had planned quietly. Even hands bound behind her back, Marie-Ange had resources, and the first thing she had done once her mouth was free was to use her teeth and tongue to bunch the sleeve of her shirt up past her tattoo.
There was another thump and a warm wind curled up under the door, bringing with it the smells of bayou and booze, cheap perfume and jasmine, cigarettes and spices. The doorknob fell off and clattered to the floor, the door opening to reveal a grinning witch in a maid's uniform.
"Room service!"
***
So there was Nico, sitting, on the car. In silence. Kind of slouching a little. Not terrified at all, what are you talking about? She was magically apt to deal with anything that came her way (she hoped) and if everything went right, she wouldn't even need to move until Amanda came back, and that would be soon, she hoped. Alright, maybe Nico was a liiiittle nervous, because it was all dark and silent and she hadn't been in a situation like that since she had to sleep on alleyways, which hadn't been too nice once you get to think about it. Peeking out of the window, Nico hoped her mentor and Remy were alright. It was a rather silent hoping she did, of course.
Sudden activity over at the door caught her attention. Several men came out, with varying expressions of concern and annoyance, and briefly spoke together before starting to spread out, all facing the back entrance. Street lights gleamed off gun muzzles.
Okay, something was certainly not right at all. Nico watched with eyes wide open the group of people that wasn't supposed to be there. With guns. Guns that most certainly were going to be used. How did she know? Well, unless they were going to play hide and seek and poke at each other with them, taking cover before shooting was the most likely option. And who they wanted to shoot wasn't that hard to imagine. Taking a deep breath, Nico tried not to panic, because that wouldn't help at all. Of course, she didn't get any useful idea of what to do. She had to make sure they were going to stay there, and perhaps find a way to communicate with Amanda. Or a way to make them leave...without getting herself killed. Frowning, Nico kept an eye on them. Suddenly sentinel duty sucked.
It started to suck a lot more when a dude (with a gun) started to make his way towards the car. Nico couldn't help but imagine for a second what the man was probably seeing; a somewhat short Asian-looking-goth sitting in front of the steering wheel looking at him with a mix of caution and fear. Or something, Nico decided it didn't matter much because the moment the guy got too close she wouldn't have any chance of getting rid of him, or the others; yep, she was going to get rid of them now. So when the man was close enough, Nico hit the gas, measuring enough speed to surprise the dude, bump him and throw him over the hood and to the ground after it. Making the engine roar, Nico drove at the other men, trying to be as noisy and scary as she could, and what do you know? It actually worked. The men, taken by surprise, scattered and left the place in a rush.
A few minutes later, a nerve-wracked Nico was parked right where she was before, ready to go all magical on whatever moved that wasn't supposed to be moving. Sentinel duty sucked ass..
***
Out was easier than in. Everyone was either already asleep, thanks to Amanda's spell, or nowhere to be found. Neither woman was going to question their good fortune, and made for the back door at a run, once Amanda had snipped the zipties around Marie-Ange's wrists with a set of toenail clippers she'd found in the pocket of the maid's uniform.
They clattered out the back door, half-prepared for a fight, only to see the car, with a fresh set of dents on its front bumper and hood, and Nico, drumming her fingers impatiently on the steering wheel.
"I think I like your car service..." Marie-Ange said, after she and Amanda had all but leapt for the car.
"I'm not sure I do." It was hard not to wince at the damage to her beloved car, but Amanda wasn't about to complain about Nico's quick thinking saving their arses. "Get us the fuck out of here, Grasshopper."
***
"Don't you--"
"Enough, Zoe. You knew dat one day, Shirow's powers were going to leak to de wrong people. Dat someone outside of de Guild was going to sell off de information to de wrong people. You knew dat, and still, you pretended dat Belladonna wouldn't do it. Or that he was so normal dat no one would believe it and dey'd leave him alone." Remy snapped, cutting through her anger. "He was your brother, Zoe, and you left it to someone else to do what had to be done so dat you could blame dem instead."
Zoe had gone sheet white, and blindly reached for the desk, leaning against it. She was silent for a long time, before finally looking up at him through a gaze made of ashes. "All I wanted was to get him free of all of this, Remy." She said, finally using his name. "He deserved better."
"I know. But dis was what had to be faced, Zoe. Release Marie-Ange. Now." Remy's voice was soft, but shod in steel. Finally, she nodded and raised her cellphone.
"Let the girl-- what? She--? No, never mind. Stand down security." She dropped the phone on the desk. "They just found her missing and a couple of unconscious guards. You sent people in the second you walked through the door, didn't you." Remy nodded and she shook her head. "I should have known. What would you have done if it hadn't worked."
"Torn dis place apart and every person in Remy's way until I found dem. Dese are my people, Zoe. My responsibility."
She nodded, wiping her face. "I don't think we have any further business. But, Gambit-" He paused. "whatever we had before is over. Everything is now strictly business, and strictly what is in the best interests of my Guild. Do you understand that, you son of a bitch?"
"Oui. Remy is sorry 'bout Shirow."
"Yeah." She waved him off. "Yeah."
Remy turned his back and walked out of the office, leaving her alone with the cored out feelings of loss. The hallways were empty, and he walked alone out into the New Orleans night. Another battle in a war that no one could even define, and more losses as a result. He shook off the black feeling. Somewhere nearby, his team was waiting, whole again for the first time in months, and like Zoe, Remy's first priority had to be his people. He lit a cigarette and walked on, never looking back at what they left behind.
