"Sleeping," she told Hank when she joined him in the kitchen where he was stacking an incredible amount of hamburgers onto his plate.
"Good," was the reply and he grinned at her as she playfully swiped a hamburger and a bag of chips.
Both went outside, enjoying the calmness that had settled over the school now that Erik was back again. The students had been worried, the staff had been distracted, and their headmaster had been an emotional wreck, even if Charles hadn't tried to let on just how badly he was off.
Raven leaned against McCoy as he devoured the first three hamburgers, marveling again how he could metabolize all of it so well. He didn't gain an ounce of weight. She was glad everything had worked out, even if she was curious about the other world and had a ton of questions should Erik be willing to answer them. Reaper had been close-mouthed as always, Hayes had disappeared, and Blu couldn't talk in his animal form. And since he loved running around on four legs, talking was a challenge. Finding him even more so.
"He'll need a while to heal the damage done by the rift," Hank said as he polished off the bag of chips. "I know Erik's tough, but this was tougher."
"Charles will take care of him."
It got her a grin and she kissed her boyfriend's nose. Hank twitched it. Raven smiled more.
"I know he will. And I know Erik will claim to hate every minute of it while secretly enjoying it. I'm looking forward to the arguments."
McCoy grimaced. Arguments about being fit enough, about going out and looking for mutants again, about taking up exercising. Erik was a runner who made his laps every morning he was at the mansion.
"Because the make-up sex will be even better," Raven added, laughing.
Hank snorted, glad that blushes didn't show on his blue skin. At least not too badly. Raven grinned at him, kissing him. Then she turned to her own food, shooting seductive little looks at her boyfriend now and then. Hank finally turned away with a flustered look.
"You're impossible," he muttered.
"So are you, hon. Just be glad Charles has enough control not to blast his emotions all over the place," she hummed into his pointed ear.
"I'm very thankful for that."
"Not that we need it," Raven continued.
He turned his head and looked into her equally yellow eyes. Blue skin on blue fur.
"You're insatiable, Raven."
"Hm, I know someone else who can very well keep up with me."
Hank turned abruptly, using his agility and strength to have them tumble. She laughed, hugging him tightly. McCoy grinned, showing sharp teeth that didn't frighten her. The next kiss was soft and loving.
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The bandages were a reminder of his weakness, as was the feeding line. Erik told Reaper to remove it three days after they got home and he was coherent enough to be awake for longer stretches of time. Hank had told him to listen to his body, backed up by Charles who had projected 'safe' over and over. Even now, so long after everything that had threatened him was dead and gone, he moved to a program hammered into him with pain and blood and tears. Never show a weakness, never let your guard down, never let the tears come.
Charles respected his distance in those moments, but he refused to leave him completely alone. And Erik listened to his body and let himself rest.
But three days were enough.
Reaper gave him the raised brow.
"I'm not a baby," he argued.
"And this isn't an umbilical cord, Erik. It's a safety measure."
"Call it what you want, it comes off right now!"
Her neutral look rivaled his own expressions sometimes. Reaper was hardly ever impressed by shows of temper. For a future doctor she had a rather bad bedside manner, but her healing capabilities made up for that fault.
"Reaper, now!" he ordered.
"As you wish. It's your breakdown."
Then she carefully removed the line. It didn't hurt, it didn't pull, he felt nothing. A nod was all he thanked her with, then he walked out onto the grounds of the manor, needing air.
It came as no great surprise that Charles followed. Or maybe he had already been here. Erik had no idea. He didn't care one way or the other.
Looking at the other man he simply walked up to him, sitting down beside the telepath. Silently they looked out over the expanse of trees and grass, the manor just barely visible through the dense flora. This silence was something that had struck Erik before. Right after their first meeting. They would sit together, just them, no TV, no radio. Not even a game. They would read or just enjoy each other's company. Sometimes Erik would ask Charles to tell him about his research, his papers, and he would listen to him talk about science and genetics. He understood only a little of what Xavier read, was impressed that this man had written all of those pages, but he enjoyed listening.
And when they had been looking for the mutants Cerebro had found, the silent rides had been just as comfortable. He didn't need to talk. Not because Charles was a telepath, but because there was no need at all.
Erik flexed his fingers, grimacing as the healing cuts pulled and stung. Hank had changed the bandages from near-immobilizing to restricted movement and flexibility, but he still needed to let it heal on its own. His fingers peeked through the whiteness and he wriggled them a little. They had yet to discover a mutant who could heal instantly. Reaper was the best they had in that department.
Charles watched him, the hand, and his face was unreadable. Not completely, but mostly. Erik knew him, had seen him out of focus and just be there in his mind alone. He opened his own mind and felt the brush of Charles' powerful psychic force, something that could easily wipe out a mind or kill a person. This man, whose body was simply human, had a gift that was more powerful than even Erik's. Despite Charles' claims that Lensherr had already surpassed him, Erik didn't believe it.
Blue eyes blinked and focused on him.
Erik smirked. "Deep thoughts?" he teased.
"A lot of thoughts."
"Anything useful?"
Charles laughed softly. "I believe everything is useful."
Something tingled through him and Erik knew the sensation, knew the need and the lust. Looking at Charles, the lust had never changed. He had no idea what it was about this one man that had him so entranced, had pulled him in and kept him there. Charles Xavier was so unlike anyone he had ever met and probably ever would. He doubted it was a telepath thing. He had never been remotely attracted to Emma Frost, who was a stunning woman, no doubt. Insane, cold, but stunning.
No, this was Charles alone.
From the amused look in his partner's eyes. Xavier had picked up on his thoughts.
"You're spying again," he only growled.
"I respect the privacy of the mind, Erik. You know that." A tiny fraction of hurt accompanied the words.
Erik snarled and lithely pushed the other man back onto the ground, settling neatly on his hips.
"The fuck you are. You always touch me."
"You never minded."
"I don't even know what privacy is anymore."
"Erik…"
"You need me," he drove his point home.
Erik leaned closer, catching a shiver and a small sense of arousal. Charles was probably the only one who got off on facing down the predator. Erik knew how to instill fear, he had seen more than one of his one-night stands run off when he had looked at them after the fact, but this man had stayed and still wanted him. Even in the throes of passion, when he lost control of his gift for a fraction, he didn't show anything but love. Appreciation. Need. Pride.
"You need me, Charles," he said roughly. "You need this, don't you?"
The wide blue eyes told him the answer. Charles needed him. To keep him sane, anchored, balanced.
"I don't mind," he rumbled.
Because no one had ever needed him this way. No one had ever seen something peaceful and balancing in him until this man, who claimed he respected privacy and was so firmly lodged in his mind that being alone hurt.
Charles pulled him down, kissing him, letting his body show him what he already knew. Erik pushed back, pent-up emotions clawing at his walls. He wanted this; he wanted Charles.
::I'm here. Always::
His left hand protested the grasp he had on Charles' shoulder, but he ignored it. Erik had been shown what could have been, had seen so much pain in the parallel Charles' eyes, had seen the loss and the need.
::Always::
Pain and loneliness and knowing that he had failed at keeping his best friend with him. The horror of losing the use of one's legs and the knowledge that the future was now just getting worse. Facing Magneto while knowing who he had been. Wanting so much to turn back time…
He felt a sob leave his chest and buried it underneath a harsh kiss.
::Missed you:: Charles whispered. ::Like a black void inside me… growing…::
Erik was thunderstruck for a moment, staring at the liquid blue eyes, taking in everything. Charles had felt his disappearance. It had been almost painful.
::It was painful, Erik. I need you::
Part of him. Erik was part of him. And Erik was humbled and elated and terrified and happy, all in the same moment. He had never given their easy telepathic connection much thought. He had blamed it on Charles' gift, their first meeting, their emotional reactions and later their relationship. He had never thought that this ease had a violent backlash on his lover.
::It's not negative:: Charles told him, picking up on his whirling thoughts. ::It's perfect::
Clothes were in the way and easily removed. Erik felt soft skin, stretching over muscles that moved lithely underneath his fingers.
"I need you," he groaned.
In so many ways. More than just a physical way. He needed him to be… to stay human, to be more than what Shaw had intended him to be. Charles gave him humanity and emotions, he gave him something to hold on to, a reason to continue a life that had lost its purpose after Shaw's death.
::You have me, Erik. I'm not letting go. I'll always be by your side::
He held that heated blue gaze, knew the truth in the statement. This was their world, their reality, and it was their future to shape. He would never be Magneto, he would never turn against Charles.
"I'll always be by yours," he vowed.
Charles framed his face, then kissed him. If there had ever been any doubt about his loyalty, the visit to a parallel reality had erased it.
::Love you::
He echoed those words, fiercely. The rest was drowned in a sea of need and love and lust.
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School went back to normal. The students gave him happy smiles, some expressing their relief that Erik was back. He even got a neutral nod and a clap onto the shoulder from Azazel before the red-skinned mutant left for wherever he always went. Riptide had given him a half-smile, as always barely speaking a word when not with some students.
When he was finally rid of the bandages and had regained use of his hand through rigorous physical therapy, Erik finally decided it was time. He needed to get back into business.
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Erik checked and rechecked his gear, then proceeded to strip off his clothes to change into his flight suit. While the Black Bird was as safe, maybe even a lot safer, than a commercial plane, Hank insisted that they wore the suits. Black and yellow, Hayes had once complained that she looked like a bumblebee on steroids. Not that it had led to Hank changing the colors.
Movement caught his eye and he gave Charles a one-sided smile when the telepath walked into the room. Erik shot his lover a quizzical look when the other man just leaned against the wall, looking at him. Looking intensely at him, blue eyes running over his mostly undressed partner, lingering on the slender form longer than was strictly necessary.
"See something you like?" Erik purred.
They still had time till the launch. He was always early.
Charles' expression was shadowed, almost predatory. He rarely became this intense and the last few weeks at home had been very intense indeed. Healing, regaining his strength, training, and Charles. Erik knew that their separation had been hard, that Xavier hadn't known if he was still alive, but he only had an inkling what it had meant on a psychic level for his lover. He couldn't really, truly grasp the depth of those powers, the consequences of what Charles was doing sometimes. He only saw the outcome, the good and the bad and the really nasty.
::You mean everything, Erik:: was the honest answer.
They looked at each other from a distance, then Charles approached, each step measured.
::You don't have to go. Let Reaper handle this::
"I can't keep hiding, Charles."
::You're not::
It was eerie to hear the voice and see no lip movement. Erik felt the pressure on his mind, the anchor stronger than before. The anchor had never been removed. Charles had recovered from the abuse of his gift, but he hadn't removed what bound them together. Erik suspected it would be difficult anyway.
::Painful:: Charles whispered.
"You're spying," Lensherr murmured, reaching out and pulling the slightly smaller man close. "And I'll be fine. Reaper, Hayes and Blu are sticking to me like glue. It'll be hard to breathe with them around. We'll fly to Kenya, find the kid and come home."
::I want to come with you::
"Clingy doesn't suit you."
Annoyance flooded the youngish face, eyes flaring with anger. "I'm not clingy!"
Erik leaned forward, capturing the telepath's lips. "Hm, but you are," he murmured. "Very. I love you, Charles. I won't do anything foolish. This is just a simple case of flying to Africa, find a girl who can control the weather, offer her a place here and come home."
"Cameron Creek was a simple case, too."
And the boy had nearly managed to kill Erik by shoving him into a dimension that hadn't wanted him.
"You gonna hold that against me until eternity?"
"Most likely."
"If that's all you got, Professor, you need to come up with a better argument."
Charles slid his hands over the firm planes so enticingly close. Erik suppressed a groan.
"I'm coming with you," he repeated. "Reaper already told me she needs some time off. As does the rest of your team."
Traitors!
"Reaper has exams coming up."
Treacherous, mutinous traitors! He knew Reaper aced whatever was thrown at her in those medical exams.
"Hayes claims she has vacation days, too."
Right! As if!
"And Blu told me to get this out of my system." Charles grinned.
Erik growled softly. "Who's gonna fly? Or do you want to go commercial?"
Charles gave him a raised eyebrow. "I know you can handle the Black Bird. You pestered Hank enough to teach you."
He pulled him close. "Just you and me then? Like old times?"
And part of him, his own treacherous part, happily announced it approved. Like old times. He had actually missed the recruiting trips.
"Yes," Charles murmured into the crook of Erik's neck.
"We'll never get out of that hotel bed."
It got him a snort of laughter and Charles shot him a mischievous look. "Like old times?"
Erik laughed warmly. Back then, in the beginning of their friendship, sharing beds had been platonic. Back then he hadn't figured out his emotions and his needs.
"You're a bad, bad influence, Charles Francis Xavier."
"I had the best of teachers."
"Looks like it." Erik stepped back, sizing him up. "Strip."
"Pardon?" ::Erik, really. Here?::
He grabbed a flight suit and tossed it at the other man. "Strip, grab your gear, we're leaving in five. And get your mind out of the gutter."
::But the gutter is your wonderful brain, my friend::
Charles looked like a kid about to take part in an amusement ride, eyes alight, smiling widely, and Erik couldn't but feel the deep affection that had been there from the start once more. Affection that had turned to respect, which was now an unconditional love.
He was ready in five, almost bouncing on the balls of his feet. Erik shook his head and gave him a friendly shove into the Black Bird.
"Strap in. It's gonna be a long flight."
When he taxied the plane into position he caught sight of Reaper. He refused to be baited by her smug look, but he would give her an earful about manipulative moves and traitors later.
::She loves you, Erik. She wants the best for you. Me::
::Arrogant little bastard, aren't you?:: he sent back.
::I know a good thing when I see it::
There it was again, the warmth. Something he cherished and now even more so. Other realities had differed from this one, had taken this man away from him through his own fault. He had seen the pain and regret in the parallel Charles. He suspected his own parallel self was just as torn if Magneto had only an inkling as to what he had thrown away.
Erik prepared for take-off, then took off in a perfect maneuver. He might have opened the throttle a little too much, judging by Charles' surprised gasp.
::Ass::
And he laughed, winking at his lover.
Then they were on their way to Kenya.
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He came in the middle of the night. It had been years since he had set foot into this place, but it felt like he had never been gone. Somehow he wasn't surprised to find the object of his visit sitting in the dark study, looking at him from knowing blue eyes.
Magneto met those eyes, face blank. He knew Charles couldn't read him because he was still wearing the helmet, but somehow Xavier seemed to know.
"You had a visitor."
Charles was silent.
Looking at him, seeing him in this chair, let something violent surge through Magneto. He knew he had been the cause and he had torn himself apart over it again and again. Nothing could be changed unless someone came up with a new development in the field of medicine or bio-technology. If McCoy hadn't so far, no one else had.
"Found him enlightening?" he now teased.
"In a way." Charles steered the wheelchair closer. "Why have you come?"
"I was curious."
"About your parallel self?"
"About many things."
Charles sighed and pinched his nose. Now, in the light of the study lamp, Magneto saw how pale and worn he looked. Little sleep, too much worry, the weight of the world on his shoulders. Another surge rose, this time of a different emotion.
"I'm not in the mood for games, Erik."
The cape moved gently at his back as he closed the distance, looking at the man who had once been his best friend. Now… now he was someone Erik Lensherr regretted leaving. But their differences had been inconsolable. They hadn't faced each other across a battlefield ever since, but there had been more differences pushing them apart until Erik believed that nothing could ever bridge the gap.
"You're such a naïve fool, Charles. So idealistic and misguided in your belief that humanity will ever accept us."
"And your ways are so much better? Fear and pain and threats? How can you promote a world where another race lives in fear?"
Erik felt the old tension, the old anger, come back, but he refused to be baited. They had had these arguments before, long-distance, neither about to give in.
"I admit to being wrong sometimes," Charles went on, looking away, eyes drawn to the darkness outside. "I admit that I might have ignored issues in favor of my dream of a peaceful co-existence."
Magneto smirked.
"I won't condone instilling fear and killing humans just because we have a genetic mutation and they don't. Evolution is a slow process. Who is to say that the mutants are the ones who are born to rule?"
The age-old argument, the just as old plea to reconcile their differences. He looked at the tired man, his old friend, tried to overlook the damage done. Charles was no longer blinded by his high-held ideals, but he also wasn't a ruthless conqueror. Erik, who had lived through one genocide, knew that his ways, while cruel, would never reflect those of other madmen.
"How did they solve their problems?" he asked neutrally.
It got him a little laugh, the blue eyes suddenly warm and inviting. "Do you have time for a cup of tea, old friend?"
The gentle words caught him off guard and he briefly scanned the room. No one was there. He felt a dozen metallic weapons at his disposal, but no threat. His tension lessened a little more.
"It will take me a while to explain their reality," Charles added.
Magneto flicked his wrist and the door locked. "I'm all ears."
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When he left again, Charles watched until the slender figure had disappeared in the murky light of a coming dawn. His lips were warm from the kiss, his body tingling, and something inside of him shivered.
Just one moment.
Maybe a new beginning.
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Six months after the visitors from a parallel reality a auburn-colored dog trotted up the steps to the gigantic manor in Westchester. He was carrying a satchel and easily jumped the banister to slip through an open terrace door.
Charles looked up from what he had been reading. Five minutes later the door handle was pushed down and the dog was there, looking at him from intelligent hazel eyes.
The satchel was dropped and the dog sat down.
It was wearing a collar that was hardly there to restrain him. It was a rift device.
"Blu," Charles greeted him.
It got him a little huffing noise.
He steered the wheelchair over to the satchel and Blu picked it up once more, placing it into his lap. Charles looked inside.
It was a data drive.
With a letter.
'Maybe your McCoy can decipher what our genius blue guy is trying to tell you,' was written. 'Looks like he has an idea how to help you. And maybe my parallel self. Look at it as my only way to thank you. Have fun. Erik.'
Charles blinked. He caught the tail of Blu slipping out the door and then saw the shape-shifter bound across the lawn and toward the woods.
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An hour later Hank was gaping at what the hard drive contained.
"Cybernetics, Professor," he whispered, awe-struck. "An organic-mechanic interface. I've been looking into it myself, but it never worked. This is about genetically coded organic cells… your cells, infused with tiny nanites. If this works…"
Charles felt his heart constrict. He looked at the screen. If it worked… He didn't dare to hope. Tears swam in his eyes.
Thank you, Erik, he thought.
Maybe one day he would have the chance to say it in person.
fin!
More stories in this alternate 'verse coming soon.