NOTE: It had actually taken me a really long time to even consider writing this, since I really enjoyed the chemistry that Erik and Charles had in X-Men: First Class. I felt like, if I wrote this, I would destroy the purity of their relationship. But…now, here it is. I hope you enjoy it!
DISCLAIMER: characters are not mine
WARNING: shounen-ai, boy/boy, slash
PAIRING: Erik Lehnsherr / Charles Xavier
SUMMARY: The relationship of Charles Xavier and Erik Lehnsherr, as seen through another's eyes.
. . . . . .
Part One
Moira MacTaggert
She really should've seen it coming, from the moment he jumped off the ship without any second thoughts, to save an unknown man's life. Everything was subtle; carefully placed touches here and there, along with carefully thought out words. To a normal bystander, the actions and exchanges would seem almost irrelevant, but not to her. She knew these men, knew how they carried themselves and how they interacted with others; which is why she just should have known and berates herself for not noticing it sooner.
Of course, she hadn't known either man for very long, having only met them both less than two weeks ago; but she prided herself for having keen observation skills. That is, after all, the reason she became a part of the CIA—amongst other things. It wasn't that hard to see how one's eyes would light up even more than usual when the other is present, or how the other's hardened demeanour softened slightly whenever the other came into view. But it still boggled her mind at how it took her ages to realize something so blatantly obvious. Maybe she had the interference of her feelings towards one of the men to blame for that; but now, she was free from it and her eyes are more open than they were before.
"Do you really believe this is for the best, Charles?" she heard the low, commanding voice of Erik Lehnsherr ask, with a hint of impatience, as she passed by his room at the off-site headquarters of the CIA.
There was a long pause and she wondered why Erik wasn't getting a response, but when she heard him begin to speak again, she immediately knew that he was having a telepathic conversation with everyone's favourite professor, Charles Xavier.
"But for the government to know who we are, where we are…what we're capable of. It just doesn't feel safe, Charles."
Another pause, then Erik was speaking again. "They're rounding us up. Next thing you know, tests and experiments will be done to us. —No ifs or buts, Charles. I know what it feels like, remember? I know you've never experienced anything like that before, but even you can't be so naive to believe —," he stopped, midsentence, leading her to assume that Charles was stating his side of the argument.
She knew standing by Erik's door, listening in on his one-sided conversation was an invasion of privacy, but she just couldn't help it. There was just something about his voice whenever he was speaking to Charles; it still held its usual coldness, but whenever it was directed at Charles, the coldness was often laced with frustrated adoration.
The resigned, "Oh, Charles…" brought her out of her musings, and she lingered just a bit longer to listen if anything else was said, but it seemed as though that was the end of discussion. As she was about to go on her way, however, she was surprised to feel a light, but firm, grip around her wrist. She turned to find Erik's piercing greyish-blue eyes studying her indifferently.
"Are you aware that eavesdropping is impolite, Agent MacTaggert?" he inquired smoothly, but she could hear the threat hidden in his words.
"I—I'm sorry! I was just passing by and—," he cut her off.
"And what did you expect to learn in this invasive journey of yours?"
"Nothing! I didn't mean to listen in. It just happened."
"Then make sure it doesn't happen again."
With that, he left her alone in the hallway once more. "I'm sorry about that, Moira." She felt, more than heard, Charles in her head. "You know how Erik can be…"a thoughtful pause, then:"Well…I guess you don't; only I do." There was something about that simple phrase that shook her; a certain possessiveness that she never thought a man like Charles was capable of.
"You told him I was outside." She accused, if only for the lack of anything better to say.
Charles chuckled. "Of course I did. Erik values his privacy as much as the next person; it would be wrong of me to not tell him you were listening outside his door."
"Privacy? I highly doubt a telepath holds any right to give lectures on privacy,"she argued,"especially Erik's."
"I'm allowed." There goes that possessiveness again; but before she could retort, Charles had retreated from her mind.
Yet again, she wondered how it had taken her eons to realize that there was more to Charles and Erik than meets the eye; and thus, spent the rest of the way back to her quarters, pondering her prior inability.
END
(of Moira MacTaggert)
