Profile of a Mutant Killer

A/N: The mutants are sent out with Mogan and Reid to talk to street kids. Some interesting truths are discovered.
Thanks as always to berryblue_girl for brainstorming with me.

Feedback is wanted and relished.

Chapter 3

Once they were in the SUV and headed out, Remy watched the body language between the two agents from his vantage point in the back seat. Morgan gripped the wheel with a hard hold while Reid leaned away from him against the window.

It was plain to see the younger man was very upset with his co-worker. He answered any questions from Derek with simple replies. Remy could tell this shortness bothered Derek.

In the few hours they had known the FBI team, both mutants had picked up on Reid's tendacy to go on and on when talking about any subject. A characteristic they were familiar with since Hank did the same thing quite a bit. They figured it was a genius science geek thing. So the curtness of his replies was a red flag, the genius was pissed off.

Logan didn't like the tension and he reached for Remy's hand, the instinctual side wanting to have a hold on his lover, should something go wrong. The Cajun was touched and amused by this and gave him a soft smile.

Derek used the rearview mirror to keep an eye on the pair in the back seat. He had gotten a tongue lashing from Hotch about professional behavior and protocol. Hotch told Morgan that this bad attitude was the reason he couldn't send the agent to the mayor's office.

Grinding his teeth, Derek tried to quell the resentment he felt for these men he'd only just met.

Reid stared out the window and wondered how he was going to deal with Derek and his obvious distrust of mutants. What would that mean for them in the future? Giving himself a mental shake, he tried not to let the sadness drag him down.

He was deluding himself if he thought there was any chance Morgan would want him 'like that'. Who was he kidding? They had no furture as a couple.

Remy picked up on the genius' sadness and it pained him. Clearing his throat he tried to lighten the mood.

"So, how long y'all been working t'gether?" he asked and smiled at the dark eyes watching him in the mirror. Derek scowled. Reid turned his head to the back seat.

"5 years, 6 weeks, 29 days, 10 hours, 33 minutes and 21 seconds." he rattled off and then blushed. "Sorry, numbers are easy for me." he added before turning back to the window.

Despite his bad mood, Derek looked surprised that Spencer knew the exact time.

Logan's brow furrowed at the boy's mellencholy. He knew there was something between the two men, but they were being dumbasses about it.

"Dat's a good 'mount of time. Bout as long as Remy been working wif de Ol' Man here." he said nudging Logan with his shoulder.The feral chuckled and bumped him back.

"Brat." He said, settling in the leather seat just as the wide eyed genius looked back at them again. His honey eyes were studying Logan and then turned to Remy.

"Why do you call him old man? He's not old." He asked, looking back to Logan. Remy let out a mirthful little laugh and he leaned up toward the profiler.

"Logan be tres ol', Remy guar'n'tee." Remy said and laughed again. He was playing up his simple southern boy persona. He found it kept people off balance if they thought he was dumber than he really was.

Derek's eyes narrowed, he wasn't fooled. He could tell the Cajun was extremely intelligent. Derek wanted to know what game the thief was playing.

"He isn't old. You're what, 35-40, tops?" he asked Logan. Remy leaned in further as Spencer pulled back.

"Logan fought wit de Yankees, Remy try to forgive dat. He be de ol'est dog, Cher." he smirked and winked. Morgan grimaced and shook his head. Logan reached out and pinched his cheeky lover

"I'm not your 'dear'." Morgan groused and Remy let out another laugh, swatting absently at Logan's hand. He looked at his lover over his shoulder with laughing red eyes.

"He remind Remy of Bishop." he said and Logan yanked him back to the seat.

"Yeah, Bish don't like ya much either." he laughed as the Cajun pretended to pout.

Derek internally winced at the implication that he didn't like the Cajun.Truth was he barely knew either of them.

His issues stemmed from a past bad encounter with another mutant. He didn't really want to talk about it with people he knew well, let alone these strangers. But he needed to do something to take the wounded look off Spencer's face.

The beautiful genius was keeping him at arm's length and clearly put off by Derek's behavior. He sighed deeply and cleared his throat.

"Look, I'm sorry I came across...badly in the station. It's my problem, I know. I am trying to resolve it." he explained, trying to smooth the waves he had made. Remy leaned against his lover and shrugged.

"Long as you stop wit da 'muti' cracks, Remy don't care. Been treat'd worse. But dat word got no good meaning to it." The thief's tone was casual and carefree, but the profiler could see the glimmer in his red and black depths. There was only 'so far' this boy could be pushed.

Derek read the files Garcia had given them. He wondered if it was all true. If it was, Gambit was a very lethal X-Man. Just as lethal as the feral man beside him with foot long blades in his fists. The profiler shook his head and mused at the unusual things he encountered in this job.

The traffic was thick but Morgan made his way with the practice of one who'd grown up in a big city. They slipped out of the main traffic and into the more derelict areas. Here, the usual populous of hookers, dealers, pimps and street people filled the sidewalks and alleys.

Pulling over into a parking spot next to a rusted and burnt out car, Derek turned the engine off and looked around. Remy was scanning the streets while Logan lowered his window to get a good whiff of the locale. Just as Derek was about to ask where to start, Remy jumped out of the SUV.

"Be back." he called over his shoulder as the door slammed. Logan's head snapped to the direction his lover went and he cursed.

"Damn it, Gumbo!" he snarled and scooted over to roll down the window and 'listen'. Derek looked irritated and Spencer looked down right worried. Logan waved a hand.

"I may not like him runnin' off like that, but truth is Rems grew up on the streets. Ain't no place he knows better. If we were in the woods then I'd worry about him." he said, his pride in the Empath plain in his voice. Spencer chuckled.

"But yet, you still listen for him." he pointed out and Logan shrugged.

"He's mine." he said simply. "I protect what's mine." Morgan could relate to the sentiment.

He glanced at Reid and noticed the way the sunlight was glinting in his golden brown locks. The genius was staring out the windshield trying to keep watch for Remy. His white teeth gnawing at the plump bottom lip. Derek wished he could chew on those cherry red lips. Shaking himself, he tried not to give a big sigh.

Spencer was mad at him. He needed to make things right between them. Deciding that he would talk to the genius when they retired to the hotel that night, Derek focused on the job at hand. Locating mutant street kids and finding out if they knew about the unsub.

X-CM X-CM X-CM X-CM

Remy slipped into the shuffling people on the street with grace. His long inbred instincts kicking in. He kept his head down, watching people through his shades. He could pick out the disenfranchised from the abusers in the milling bodies. His chest burning with anger at the way some of the pimps were eyeing him. They were in for a big surprise if they thought they were going to scare him.

He noticed a small group of teenagers in hoodies and jeans. They were gathered in a small circle on the edge of a scraggy park. He crossed the street and approached them slowly.

As he caught the eye of the tallest male, he pulled down his shades, giving the boy a clear view of his demon eyes. The young man gasped a little and then nodded slightly. Remy tucked his hands in his trench pockets and strolled up to the group.

He could read the fluctuation of emotions. Biggest was fear. But there was curiosity and, from the two girls, arousal. Smiling easily, he leaned against the wall and drew out his smokes.

"Greetings." he said and offered the mutants a smoke. They all took one, the tallest boy taking two. He stuck one behind his ear and lit the other.

He blew the smoke out and squinted at Remy. In the shadows of his hood, the Cajun could see the prominent brow bone that stood out with a series of little boney horns sticking out of it.

"I'm Trey. Wha'da you want?" he asked, cutting through the small talk. Remy breathed out his own smoke and lifted his gaze.

"Need ta know what ya'll know bout da killer." he said simply, knowing the kids were more aware of what was going on than the police. "I'm Gambit, can ask round. Taylor, from Battery Park, knows me and Wolverine." he said and didn't look around at the little gasps that ran through the small group. They knew of the famous mutants and what they did.

"You gonna stop him?" Trey asked and Remy leveled him an unshaded look.

"You know da stories bout Gambit be true. He know what de streets are like. Ain't gonna let dis connard run round slashing." He drew in another drag. "You know anyting, it could help lead da cops to him. Don't worry doe, Gambit and Wolverine make sure he kill no more." he said, voice low and menacing.

Remy noted the nodding heads around him. One of the girls stepped forward and pushed her hood back a little. Remy studied the slits in her neck that fluttered a little at his observation. Strange gills, the thief wondered what they did. She scowled as his looking and tugged her hoodie around her neck.

"You knew Diggs, didn' you?" she asked softly. Remy's mouth turned down and he nodded. Diggs was one of the victims they had recognized.

"Yeah, de boy didn't deserve dat." he said and then handed her a simple white card. "You tink of anyting, you call Remy." he said. "No harm come to you iffen you help." He thanked them for their time before heading back up the street.

He knew it would take some time before that group would open up and share what they knew. The level of fear that he had detected, when the girl had mentioned Diggs, had been very high. They knew something and he knew they needed to trust him before they would share.

He could feel someone watching him and it made the hair on his nape stand up. He hurried, not wanting to get into a disagreement with any of the denizens of the area. Jogging across the street, he climbed back in the SUV and smiled at his lover.

"Miss me?" Remy queried with a michivious glint in his eye. Logan snorted and leaned back in the seat. He was relieved the boy was back unscathed but he wanted to tease the brat a bit. He shrugged his shoulder.

"Nope." he replied and raised a brow. "Find anythin'?" He smirked when Remy pouted. The thief shrugged then winked at Reid, who was looking over the seat with wide hazel eyes.

"Remy got de word out. Dey will come round. Jus gotta give dem time." he replied and spralwed against the door. "We should go to de o'der park, check on de femme." he added to Logan. The feral's brows creased and he nodded.

"Yer right. We need to find Tara. Make sure she ain't in danger." he said, his voice sounding troubled. Reid listened and watched them, his advanced brain putting the pieces together.

"This Tara was close to one of the victims?" he asked and Derek finally turned to look at the mutants. Remy nodded.

"Yeah, dey were partners, so to speak. Need to know she ok." he said and gave them the address of the other park. Derek started the engine and turned them in the right direction.

"We don't have a lot of time to wait for them to come around." he said, just because he needed to play the devil's advocate. Remy chuckled and draped his legs on Logan's lap.

"Don't worry none, Agn't Morgan. Dey'll call." he assured the profilers.

Logan was deep in thought and barely noticed that Remy was using him as an ottoman. He was worried about the girl, Tara. She was only 15 and had already had bad encounters with the wrong kind of people more than once. He hoped they would find her safe.

As Morgan pulled the vehicle up to another shabby looking park, Logan caught sight of the girl. She was being pushed against a brick wall by a nefarious looking man with greasy stringy hair. He was trying to conceal the knife he was threatening her with.

Logan's keen eyes could see it. He was out the door before the SUV had stopped. Gambit was right behind him. Reid yelped and fought with his seat belt to follow them.

"Easy, Reid!" Derek said as he tried to hold his partner back. "They are fucking superheroes, remember?" He said and finally got the boy's belt unhooked. Spencer looked at him hard and then shook his head.

"They are here to help us, Derek. You wouldn't say crap like that if it was one of us!" Spencer's voice was harsh and angry as he slammed out of the car. Cursing, Derek followed, reaching for his weapon as he ran after Reid.

TBC....