"As we all know, de tithing is coming up next week." she started. The thieves all nodded, Jean-Luc included. The annual tithing was a ritual done by the Thieves and the Assassins, and they all placed extreme importance on it. The benefactress of the two Guilds was the External called Candra, and while neither Guild really knew what or who she was, the ancient prophecies of the Guilds told them to honor her every year, so they did. It wasn't often that the laws of the prophecies weren't carried out. In exchange for the tithing, Candra gave the Assassins power...what kind of power the Thieves never knew...and the Thieves themselves got the Elixer of Life, which was how Jean-Luc, for instance, could be born in the 1880s, and still look forty-five over a hundred years after his birth.
"I have it on good authority...in my opinion anyway...that the Assassins are planning on sabotaging the tithing on us. Plans are underway to exchange your gift with an empty box which we all know would anger Candra deeply." Tante Mattie explained amid their angry exclamations. None of them really liked the Assassins, and they felt it was very underhanded of them to dare try something like that.
"That is so like dem!" Claude Potier grumbled. "Dey're always tryin' to better demselves...don' dey know better den to mess wit' the tithing?"
"We have to stop them!" Theoren Marceaux said angrily. "Dey can' get away wit' somet'ing like that. Jean-Luc what are we doin' 'bout dis?"
"Theoren, calm down." Henri commanded. "We have a plan. I'm going to New York to get Remy. If anyone can stop them, he can. I'm leavin' in a few minutes."
Jean-Luc cleared his throat. Everyone looked at him. "Until Henri an' Remy return, we're all jus' goin' to sit tight an' wait. I jus' wanted you all to know what was goin' on."
A few hours later, they were all, with the exception of Henri, still hanging around the LeBeau mansion, waiting for Henri and Remy to get there. Theoren and Claude were still silently fuming over the whole thing...they'd been in the Guild almost as long as Jean-Luc had...but they kept it to themselves. Emil, Genard and Mercy were talking about how good it was going to be to see Remy again, and the Guild's newest member, Zoe Ishihara, a thief from Japan, was listening to them. Jean-Luc and Tante Mattie were in the kitchen, getting supper ready. Everyone had to eat, even if they weren't that hungry.
When they heard the front door open and slam shut as if someone had kicked it, they all expected to see Henri and Remy come in, and that's what they saw. What they didn't expect was to see Remy, looking sadder than any of them had ever seen him, carrying his older brother in his arms.
"Remy put him on de couch." Theoren ordered. He looked at Emil, who jumped up and ran to the kitchen door.
"Jean-Luc, Tante, get out here!" he yelled to them. Hearing them dropping everything he went back to where the Guild had gathered around.
"Remy, what happened?" Theoren asked as Jean-Luc and Tante Mattie got there. Mercy was as white as a sheet, her green eyes wide with fear. Claude had put an arm around her shoulders to support her.
Remy shook his head. "He showed up, got de shock of his life when he startled Wolverine an' told me what was goin' on here. We were leavin' to go to de airport...all dese gunshots start ringin' out all over de place. Next t'ing I know, Henri's on de ground an' Wolverine's slashin' up Assassins like dey're his worst enemy instead of ours." Remy paused to catch his breath. "I didn' know what else to do, so I took Henri's body an' came here."
"Are dey dead?" Claude asked. "De Assassins, I mean."
Remy snorted. "Oh yeah. No doubt 'bout dat. Logan made sure of it."
Everyone paused as Tante Mattie finished examining Henri. She looked at Mercy, Jean-Luc and Remy. "I'm sorry...if it had happened here, I might have been able to do somet'ing for him. Too much time has gone by."
"I got here as fast as I could..." Remy began. Tante Mattie shook her head.
"It's not your fault, child. We know you did. It was out of your control, don' make excuses for dat."
The others were so busy trying to comfort Mercy, who had started crying uncontrollably upon realizing Henri was really and truly dead, that they didn't notice Emil had left the room, with Genard close behind him. The Guild's version of the Three Musketeers had very suddenly been permenantly cut down to two. The two remaining didn't know exactly how to deal with the loss. They went outside and sat side by side on the front steps of the mansion, hugging their knees.
"You know," Emil sighed. "Dose Assassins are really startin' to tick me off."
"Dey don' like us much, do dey?" Genard said wryly.
"Nope."
"I feel bad for Mercy...dey loved each other so much..." Genard commented with a catch in his voice.
"I know...an' since I also know how much dis is hurtin' me right now, I really don' want to know what she's goin' t'rough."
"Me neither."
"Dat is exactly what I'm telling you, Theoren, I don' know why it's so hard for you to understand." Jean-Luc replied, much to the astonishment of the rest of the Guild. "De prophecies have spoken. Dis is what I'm supposed to do."
"What I don' get is de whole unification thing." Emil commented from his seat beside Genard and Mercy. "We don' like dem, dey don' like us, an' yet here you are sayin' we have to join together wit' dem and make one unified guild? I don' know, Jean-Luc, dat doesn' seem to be a great idea from where I'm sittin."
Jean-Luc sighed. He had known when he called this meeting that it wasn't going to be easy to get the thieves to see the reason behind the whole thing. "I know dat, Emil. Given events in history, some of it still fairly recent, it's hard to accept it. But I can't exactly go 'gainst what de prophecies tell me to do."
"Do dey accept it?" Emil questioned. Jean-Luc shrugged.
"I don' know, yet. Bel's havin' a meetin' right now. She's goin' to call me when it's over. I won' know until den. But I know dey won' take de prophecies lightly. As I also know you don'. De right t'ing has to be done, whether we like it or not."
Emil got up and left the room. Mercy went to follow him, but Jean-Luc stopped her.
"Mercy, non. Let me." Mercy nodded and the rest of the guild watched as Jean-Luc followed Emil out into the back yard.
Emil was standing in the yard, staring up at the huge trees. He didn't turn around when Jean-Luc approached him. Jean-Luc stood close beside him and remained silent. He knew Emil would talk when Emil was ready to talk.
"Do you know how long it's been, Jean-Luc?" Emil asked, still looking up into the trees.
Jean-Luc shook his head. In truth, the number of years since Emil's family were killed by the Assassins had become a bit of a blur to him. He wasn't young after all, and his memory, while still good, wasn't what it was a hundred years ago.
Emil sighed. "Seventeen years." he told Jean-Luc, looking away from the trees and turning to his friend. "I'm twice as old now as I was when dey died. Sometimes, in my head, it seems like it just happened yesterday. Now de two Guilds have to join into one, b'cause de prophecies say so. How ironic."
"You haven' forgiven dem..." Jean-Luc stated. He was almost shocked, yet he knew he shouldn't be. After all, it was going to be a cold day in hell before he forgave them himself, for killing Henri.
"Non, an' I ain' goin' to anytime soon." Emil sighed. "Look, Jean-Luc. You have to do what de prophecies tell you to do. You ain' got a choice. But dat doesn' mean any of de rest of us have to like it. I don' trust dem, I never will trust dem. But I'll deal wit' it. Like everyone else will."
"Emil, I'm sorry...I wish dere was another way..." Jean-Luc faltered.
Emil shook his head. "Don' be. Dere isn' any other way. I jus' hope dey listen to Remy, 'cause if dey don', it won' work."
Jean-Luc remained quiet, thinking about that. He knew Emil was right in saying what he did. If the Assassins showed any sign of rebellion against Remy, they could pretty much kiss the unification good-bye. He also knew the whole thing was going to be difficult for both Guilds to adjust to. When two groups had been enemies for as long as the Thieves and Assassins had been, merging into one was bound to cause problems. Jean-Luc just hoped they'd get through it and be stronger because of it.
"Whew, dat wasn' close or not'ing." Emil whispered to Genard. It was a year after the unification of the two Guilds, and they were all assembled at the Boudreaux mansion with the exception of Remy, who had been told to stay away. A vote of confidence was being held that night, and somehow they had managed by the skin of their teeth to keep Remy as Guild patriarch. Emil was glad about that, even though he knew that deep down Remy didn't want to be the leader. Never had wanted to. However, something was bothering Emil, and that something was what Genard had said when it was his turn to vote. He called Genard on it.
"Do you mean to say dat if it wasn' for Jean-Luc you wouldn' have voted for Remy?" he demanded.
"I have to do what I t'ink is best, Emil." Genard replied, knowing full well that his best friend wasn't happy with him for saying what he'd said. In Emil's eyes, Remy should get votes on his own merits, not 'out of respect for his father' as Genard had put it.
"Oh come on, Genard! I can understand Theoren and Claude votin' no, I mean, it's dem. They never really liked Remy to begin wit'. But you! What would Henri say if he was here right now?"
"I don' know, Emil. But tell me dis. Why did half of de Assassins vote yes, huh?" Genard asked. "T'ings are changin', mon ami. I don' know if it's for better or for worse, but we gotta go wit' de flow or we'll get swept up in de tide."
"An' dat analogy's comin' from a man who's never been to de beach in his life, I'm impressed." Emil joked. "C'mon. De Neo's in town...Remy needs our help or else Bel's jus' overreactin' again."
Genard smiled back at his friend. "You jus' can' hold a grudge 'gainst me for more dan five seconds, can you?"
"Nope! You're de only best friend I got, I ain' 'bout to jeopardize dat." Emil laughed.
"Emil, you are such a loser." Genard laughed in return as they walked out of the mansion behind everyone else.
"Takes one to know one, Genard." Emil retorted.
"Oh very funny."