DREAMS AND DESIRES

By Keri Wilson

LeBeau Preparatory School

Chapter 1: A Proposition

Jubilee knocked on Tara's and Remy's bedroom door. She hoped they didn't sleep naked together anymore, since she was going to have to go into their room to tell them that Professor Xavier was calling them on the phone.

Tara, being a relatively light sleeper, had long ago turned the phone's ring in their room down to silent, so only the lights on top flashed when a call came in. So when they were asleep, either the answering machine got it, or if the ringing of the phone in her room woke Jubilee up, she got it. It was sort of strange, Jubilee thought, once she had her twin boys she got used to getting up early, anyways, generally before Tara and Remy.

Tara had been a very early riser, but while she was pregnant with Richard she had started sleeping later than everyone else, and had basically stuck to the pattern. She was usually the last one down for breakfast. Even though she knew that Tara generally woke up before Remy, because Remy teased her about it.

When Jubilee opened the door she could tell they still slept together, mostly naked Tara had some sort of gauzy looking nightgown that you could practually see right through, and Remy was obivously naked, the sheet just barely covering that certain part of his anatomy. Jubilee felt atinge of envy, they were so happy; where she and Logan were still uncomfortable with their roles as parents of their sons Lotan and Louis. It was mainly Logan that was uncomfortable with the parental role. It was their role as partners that both were uncomfortable with. Jubilee now felt embarrassed by her behavior on her eighteenth birthday. God! I thought was so mature! I really showed how immature I was! Still she missed the intimacy, Logan hadn't so much as kissed her since that night. Jubileecalled out Tara's and Remy's names. Tara sat up, but Remy just groaned, turned over, and went back to sleep.

Jubilee tells Tara, "The prof' calling you on the phone." Tara nodded and picked up the phone. "Yeah Professor?" Jubilee started to leave, but Tara motioned for her to stay.

"Tara, I have an idea I want to discuss with you and Remy. I'll be up there in a hour." Then he hung up.

Tara was at first surprised at his abruptness, then she remembered that the line in their room was not a secure line, so he couldn't say much. She woke Remy back up and told him and Jubilee what the professor said.

"Well, since I'm up already, I'll get the kids breakfast while you get ready." Jubilee said going out the door.

As soon as Jubilee left the room Tara and Remy got out of bed. When Tara stood up she felt that now familiar twisting in her stomach. She hurried to the bathroom, and managed to sit down and drink the anti-nausea medicine before she threw up. She caught her breath from gulping the medicine so fast, an relaxed as the queasiness gradually subsided.

"You okay,cherie?" Remy asks, leaning into the bathroom.

"Just a little sick."

"Baby, you t'ink?"

"Uh huh."

Remy came into the bathroom and kissed her. "Any more symptoms?"

"Just a headache."

Remy picked up the thermometer and handed it her.

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"Just a low grade fever." She smiled. "Well ah guess ah can stand it for about a month."

Remy huggged her, then teased her, "You want t' take a shower wit' me?"

She laughed, "Maybe tonight, we took a shower together last night, just before we went to bed, remember?"

"You smell real good den,too!"

She laughed, then felt her nausea come back. "Ooh, maybe ah shouldn't laugh so much just now."

"Okay, cherie." Remy brushed his hand against her jaw, and steppped into the shower

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When Remy got to the dinning room he saw he didn't have to tell Jubilee it would be better not to cook anything this morning because Tara was having a bad bout of morning sickness; the kids were already eating cold cereal. Three year old Renee jumped down from her chair and raced over to her father to show him the plastic prize that was in one of the cereal boxes. Remy bent down to get a hug, and Renee gave him one. The prize was a whistle. Renee blew it right in his ear. Remy winced.

"Daddy, I go show mama!"

Renee ran to the stairs yelling, "Mama, mama, look!"

Remy caught her at the first landing and swung her up in his arms. Renee shrieked with delight. Then he said, "Go show mama, but don't yell, mama's not feeling good today."

"Mama sick?"

"Uh huh, mama's sick." Remy put her down.

"Okay, not yell." She raced up the rest of the steps, at first yelling "Mama, mama, look!" at the top of her lungs, then remembering what her father said, she lowered her volume slightly.

When she reached the room, Tara said, "What is it shugah?" By now Tara was nearly dressed, she just had to comb her hair, and put on some shoes. She could pause for a few minutes.

"See mama, look!" Renee says, breathless from excitement, and the exhertion of running up three full fights of stairs. Tara was relieved that her daughter didn't blow the whistle, but merely held it out for her mother to look at.

"Uh huh it's nice." Tara says.

"Lub you, mama." Renee came over for a hug. Tara huggged her daughter and kissed her on top of her head. "Love yah too, shugah."

"Goin' back down now, okay?" Renee asked.

"Okay, tell yoah daddy ah'll be down in a minute."

Renee started to run back dowm the stairs, then she remembered mama and daddy told her not to run down the stairs, or she could fall and get hurt, like she did when she was littler, like herbrother Richard. He was almost two, but she was almost three and a half, lots bigger than him! Bigger than Lotan and Louis too, they were almost exactly the same age as her brother. She was lots older than them. She could even read some letters, and daddy was teaching her how to write her name. She could count to 100 too, Lotan could only count to 20, neither Louis or her brother could even count to 10 right,they mixed up numbers all the time.

Tara decided it would be best to skip breakfast this morning. She had noticed her morning sickness was at it's worst the first few days, when she was pregnant with Richard. In two weeks he would turn two. Not bad timing this time. They'll actually only be one baby in diapers when this baby is born.

She smiled when she thought about the night two weeks ago when this baby, if all had gone right, could have been concieved. That night, though, everthing had gone wrong. They told Jubilee to go out and have some fun. They could babysit, no problem. She and Remy had planned some fun of their own, once the kids were asleep in their beds. The night had been a disaster for them. One by one, the kids kept trooping down, asking for something.

A week later they told Jubilee to take the kids out somewhere for a few hours. Once they left, she and Remy had played a game of strip poker. Tara laughed remembering it. She had won! Ah knew he'd cheat, so ah did a little cheatin' of mah own! Everytime he'd deal the cards, ah'd stretch or play footsie with him! Then we made love on the floor, for the next hour, until we heard the car come up the driveway. She grinned as she remembered. It could have been one of the other nights recently, but ah like tah think it was that day ah got pregnant.

Then a car come up the driveway, and she thinks, speakin' of cars comin' up the driveway, ah bet that's the Professor now. Tara let herself slowly fly down the stairs, knowing it would be less jarring than walking down the stairs.

Hank, who had driven Professor Xavier here, told Jubilee that Charles wanted her to hear about his plans too. Hank said he'd watch the kids while they talked to Charles. Hank joked, "I will tell them stories to give them nightmares for weeks, if you wish."

Jubilee laughed, and teased back, "Do your worst!"

Then he gently bounded up the stairs with the kids hanging onto, or chasing after "Uncle Hank" shrieking a laughing.

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"I believe that a school is needed for the youngest children, both mutant and mutate. If you are agreeable to it, I believe that this is the best place for it, and with the three of you, plus Piotr and Kitty, we would have the best circumstances for them. Piotr and Kitty are expecting their first child, and they suggested since they were planning on retiring now, they could teach the youngest children and keep them safe. They had no suitable safe place for a school though. They told me when I found the right place, they would be ready to move in right away.

I thought about it for a few days, and decided that this would be the best site. I have not said anything to Piotr and Kitty yet. I wanted to hear your answer first.

Tara's first reaction was to feel put upon. Then she thought about it and realized she actually would like to do it. Besides, with their protection added to Piotr's and Kitty's, all the little ones would be very safe.

"Professor, how young would the youngest children be?"

"Besides your own? I was leaving that up to you, if you decided to take this job."

Remy watched his wife handle these negotitions, he was leaving this decision up to her, if she felt confortable with it, then it was fine with him.

"Ah don't think any younger than three, officially anyways. If someone feels their babies will be safer here, though, ah think we could take them in too."

Professor Xavier nodded, "It will take some time to plan out all the details, I believe we can plan for an opening date sometime next year."

"How many kids are we starting out wit'?" Remy asked.

"Ten for now, counting Luna. When I mentioned starting school for younger children, Pietro and Crystal both thought it would be good for her to come to this school. Then there will be Kitty's and Piotr's child in the nursery, in addition."

Tara smiled, "They won't be the only one with a baby in the nursery. Ah'm pretty sure ah'm pregnant again."

"Perhaps we will wait a month or two before starting the preparations then. Your symptoms do not appear to be as severe though, this time."

"No, each time it's not as bad. Just mornin' sickness, a low grade fever, a headache, and not quite as much energy as normal, is all this time. Ah'm not anywhere near as tired as ah was last time. Just don't let Bobby hear for a month or so. He called last time, when ah was still havin' mornin' sickness, and bawled Remy out,for 'gettin' me pregnant again'. As if ah didn't have a part in decidin' tah have another kid! He got me so upset ah threw up, and before he called ah thought ah would make it through that mornin' without throwin'up." Just thinking about it made her stomach roll, but she closed her eyes and breathed in deep, calming breaths, and felt her stomach relax.

Everyone waited silently until her eyes opened again. She smiled weakly, "Ah'm okay now."

Professor Xavier said, "Piotr and Kitty wanted to move into whatever place I found, right away. Kitty said it would be best now while she is still a few months from giving birth. I believe they could wait until you feel better though, Rogue. I'm sure they will have no problem with it, once they know..."

"It's fine, they can go ahead and move in now if they want to."

"You're sure?"

"Well if it's okay with Remy and Jubilee."

Both answered in the affirmative. Jubilee, thinking, that it would actually be better for them to move in now, the sooner we'll see how we adjust. I like Kitty, and Piotr's okay, and I know Tara likes 'em both.

Piotr and Remy always got along okay, and I don't think there'd be a problem with Kitty and Remy.

I just wonder how the kids will react. That's alot more up in the air than any of the adults. The kids are used to people visiting a lot, but they'll be surprised, even if we tell them, what's going to happen. I think the biggest problem will be Richard. He doesn't adjust well to any changes in his routine, he'll be sullen and withdrawn for a while, I'm sure they're aware of that though, we've all seen that behavior from him before, if they think it's nothing to be bothered about I guess I shouldn't be. Louis might be a bit of a problem too, but in opposite direction, he'll get excited, and be impossible to manage for a while. The other two shouldn't be problems, they both seem to adjust to changes better, even for their ages.

Remy thought it would be good for Piotr and Kitty to move in now, because that would be that many more people to split up the work and make Tara less likely to try to do too much. Remy was aware of Richard's probable reaction, but thought it would probably be for the best. He needed to learn how to adapt to changes; better a pleasant change than an unpleasant one. He knew Tara shared this opinion with him. Otherwise life would put an awful lot of scars on Richard. They both were concerned about this side of his personality, they were afraid of him constantly getting hurt by the changes around him.

Remy looked at Tara then, standing up. Still discussing the plans for the school with the Professor. Despite what she said, Remy could tell Tara was already getting pretty tired. He half playfully, half concerned, sat down on the couch and pulled her into his lap.

Tara blushed a little at him doing this right in front of Professor Xavier, but she kissed Remy anyways. Becuase she also thought it was a bit funny to make Professor Xavier a bit uncomfortable. There was still a small part of her that resented the way he had put the two of them on inactive status, early in her first pregnancy, it had worked out for the better, in the end, anyways. Living like this the past few years, had been the happiest years of her life. With lots more to come! She thought grinning, and leaned her head next to Remy's.

Professor Xavier cleared his throat and said, "Kitty and Piotr will be here by the end of the week. I will talk to you again, after they finish moving in."

He turned his wheelchair toward the stairs as Hank Mcoy bounded back down the stairs, again with squealing kids trailing after him.

Tara smiled at Hank and said, "You oughtta teach here some; Kitty has some science background, but not nearly as much as you, and I'm sure the kids will all like you."

"Tara, I am flattered you asked, I cannot, here, but I will gladly teach them via our Shiar technology, from the mansion."

Tara had been pretty sure that would be Hank's answer, but she felt she had to ask anyway. She also knew that another part of it was that it would leave him living further away from the woman that he was dating. Tara had a feeling about this relationship, just from the things she'd heard from Jubilee about what she had seen when Hank was with the lady. Hank was over his final breakup with Trish last year. This lady was a doctor as well. Tara hadn't met her yet but looked forward to it.