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ragin_cajunThe alley was dark. The entrance to the club was darker. This was not the kind of place that a person just accidentally got lost in. There was a certain instinct that people had that kept them from going near places like this. They feared the shadows that urban decay cast, and with good reason. In these shadows, there was thievery, murder, and worse. Or at the very least, the shadows promised as much to the unwary. Whether they delivered on that promise was up to whatever fickle fates or gods were paying attention - or whichever ones weren't. The shadows protected the club from those who did not belong.
Fortunately for the man standing at the door, he belonged. Gambit stood on the line between worlds. He was a hero. The X-Men signed off on his paychecks. He was also on several most-wanted lists around the world, and was wanted for questioning in quite a few more. People had not forgotten that he had once been the head of the Thieve's Guild -- nor had they forgotten that he was not the leader any more. Regardless of what their feelings were on that, he had not let them forget. His scores were often so high profile that even those that would sneer at him for being a "hero type" had to at least give him grudging respect.
A slot in the door slid open. It was so very classic. "Name."
"Gambit." In this world, code names were the norm. Villains had identities to protect too.
There was silence for a few moments. "You're on the lists." She meant the most-wanted lists. They were the only VIP lists a place like this cared for.
The door opened, and Gambit stepped into a world only too familiar to him. Purple strobe lights flickered and bodies writhed on the dance floor to a heavy techno beat. Where the outside of the building looked derelict, the inside looked like someone had gotten their hands on tech even SHIELD would envy. Gambit glanced around. There were several second and third string villains here. They frowned at him, but didn't confront him. Electro, Tiger-Shark, Spiral, Tombstone, and others. Once a person was in here, there was a very strict no-violence rule. If you cleared the lists, you were good to go. If you broke the rules, you usually weren't seen again and some lucky hero eventually wondered what ever happened to that guy.
Under many other contexts, Gambit and any number of these bad hommes would be at each other's throats, but today, they were all equal lowlives. Anna would have a fit if she knew he were here, but that was why he tended to keep some elements of his life off her radar. Of course, with access to the Avengers databases now, she would have access to those lists, and he might eventually have to answer some questions. Eventually. But not now. For now, they could be happy and not let that old bone cause the same old tensions.
He wasn't interested in dancing. Several of the women were, but they were disappointed as he walked on past. With Anna back in his life, he was a taken man. No more playing around. Eventually, he found the person he was looking for and sat down across from him.
"Fence." The man's name wasn't really "Fence". He just preferred to not give out his real name. Ever.
"Gambit."
"Whatcha got for moi?"
"A job." He pulled out a yellow envelope and slid it across the table.
"You know I doan' be doin' dat so much any more, mon ami."
"You want information, I want payment. This is payment and information."
Gambit opened the envelope. There was privacy here, even in a throng of lowlives and cutthroats. Especially here. Despite what most might think, there really was an honor among thieves...and whatever else all of these characters might be. Maybe that was why he could never take one foot out of this world. It was home.
"Electronics."
"Yep."
"Gonna tell me what dey do?"
"You're going to find out."
Gambit looked back down at the intel, narrowing his eyes as he read through it again. Then he slid the papers back into the envelope and passed them back to Fence with a nod. He would be stealing from a subsidiary of Hammer Industries. It didn't rankle his moral code too much, but it also wasn't something that he'd be bragging about to any of the X-Men.
"Dis better be wort' it, mon ami. Ain't too nice to call me down here wit' promises of information dat I need to know, den ask me to pay for it."
"I'm not a very nice person. And neither are you, since you are sitting here right now."
"I'm on dose lists because I normally steal from bad people. Can't help it dat it's still illegal to do dat."
Fence smirked ever so slightly for the first time during the whole conversation. "Testy. If I cared what was legal and what was not, I might argue. If you cared, you wouldn't be here. As it is, you do what you do very well, and many parties are quite interested in you attaining the insights that this job will provide. Goodbye, Gambit."
Gambit nodded with a small frown and stood. When business was done around these parts, it was done. Without another word to anyone, he left.
Fortunately for the man standing at the door, he belonged. Gambit stood on the line between worlds. He was a hero. The X-Men signed off on his paychecks. He was also on several most-wanted lists around the world, and was wanted for questioning in quite a few more. People had not forgotten that he had once been the head of the Thieve's Guild -- nor had they forgotten that he was not the leader any more. Regardless of what their feelings were on that, he had not let them forget. His scores were often so high profile that even those that would sneer at him for being a "hero type" had to at least give him grudging respect.
A slot in the door slid open. It was so very classic. "Name."
"Gambit." In this world, code names were the norm. Villains had identities to protect too.
There was silence for a few moments. "You're on the lists." She meant the most-wanted lists. They were the only VIP lists a place like this cared for.
The door opened, and Gambit stepped into a world only too familiar to him. Purple strobe lights flickered and bodies writhed on the dance floor to a heavy techno beat. Where the outside of the building looked derelict, the inside looked like someone had gotten their hands on tech even SHIELD would envy. Gambit glanced around. There were several second and third string villains here. They frowned at him, but didn't confront him. Electro, Tiger-Shark, Spiral, Tombstone, and others. Once a person was in here, there was a very strict no-violence rule. If you cleared the lists, you were good to go. If you broke the rules, you usually weren't seen again and some lucky hero eventually wondered what ever happened to that guy.
Under many other contexts, Gambit and any number of these bad hommes would be at each other's throats, but today, they were all equal lowlives. Anna would have a fit if she knew he were here, but that was why he tended to keep some elements of his life off her radar. Of course, with access to the Avengers databases now, she would have access to those lists, and he might eventually have to answer some questions. Eventually. But not now. For now, they could be happy and not let that old bone cause the same old tensions.
He wasn't interested in dancing. Several of the women were, but they were disappointed as he walked on past. With Anna back in his life, he was a taken man. No more playing around. Eventually, he found the person he was looking for and sat down across from him.
"Fence." The man's name wasn't really "Fence". He just preferred to not give out his real name. Ever.
"Gambit."
"Whatcha got for moi?"
"A job." He pulled out a yellow envelope and slid it across the table.
"You know I doan' be doin' dat so much any more, mon ami."
"You want information, I want payment. This is payment and information."
Gambit opened the envelope. There was privacy here, even in a throng of lowlives and cutthroats. Especially here. Despite what most might think, there really was an honor among thieves...and whatever else all of these characters might be. Maybe that was why he could never take one foot out of this world. It was home.
"Electronics."
"Yep."
"Gonna tell me what dey do?"
"You're going to find out."
Gambit looked back down at the intel, narrowing his eyes as he read through it again. Then he slid the papers back into the envelope and passed them back to Fence with a nod. He would be stealing from a subsidiary of Hammer Industries. It didn't rankle his moral code too much, but it also wasn't something that he'd be bragging about to any of the X-Men.
"Dis better be wort' it, mon ami. Ain't too nice to call me down here wit' promises of information dat I need to know, den ask me to pay for it."
"I'm not a very nice person. And neither are you, since you are sitting here right now."
"I'm on dose lists because I normally steal from bad people. Can't help it dat it's still illegal to do dat."
Fence smirked ever so slightly for the first time during the whole conversation. "Testy. If I cared what was legal and what was not, I might argue. If you cared, you wouldn't be here. As it is, you do what you do very well, and many parties are quite interested in you attaining the insights that this job will provide. Goodbye, Gambit."
Gambit nodded with a small frown and stood. When business was done around these parts, it was done. Without another word to anyone, he left.
ooc
Date: 2013-03-02 12:55 am (UTC)Re: ooc
Date: 2013-03-02 02:55 am (UTC)...You wouldn't mind turning a certain Cajun's writer on to some of this other good fic, would you? I might enjoy some extra reading material. :)
Edit: Found one by She-Hulk! :) I often miss them because the reading page scrolls so fast with SWS stuff.
Re: ooc
Date: 2013-03-03 02:46 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-03-02 05:58 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-03-02 06:35 am (UTC)Hahaha! I figured she would be! I'm just not sure if it's because she worries for his safety, or she sees him as an addict for the underbelly of life that keeps returning to the habit...
no subject
Date: 2013-03-02 11:02 am (UTC)Mostly safety, and then the whole "Seriously, you're a super hero now, knock it off" thing she does sometimes. Though, she's got such a blind spot for him.
no subject
Date: 2013-03-02 04:29 pm (UTC)I love the dichotomy there! He's a super hero with a past who doesn't seem to want to knock it off, not completely, and she is one with a past that fully embraces the hero life either to ward off the past or...for other reasons I can't think of now but are probably very deep.