So, here we go, my take on DoFP (once again, my apologies if anyone expected something closer to canon, that was never going to be possible here). Hope you'll enjoy anyway! And please don't forget to read the notes at the end, they're important.
P.S. I've said this before, but I really don't want someone complaining later on: there is slash here! I've been suggesting it before, but here you really will see the pairing (I promise there will be nothing explicit and no need to raise the rating, I just know there are people who might not like this pairings). Now, time to get on with things!
Bright Pink Rose
Sometimes a 'Thank You' may mean more than any other hundred words...
It wasn't easy to explain to Erik how exactly his daughter had been alive all along, particularly how and why he hadn't known...
"It's not like it was our fault!" I snapped eventually.
"What?" Erik certainly hadn't been expecting that.
"Will and I, we barely got out of the hostel before it collapsed." I explained. "We could hear the yelling at the front, but didn't really understand much of what everyone was yelling. And then we could all sense the power rumbling beneath the earth. We had to flee. Papa and Hakon went back, after leaving us in a hotel in the closest town, they found nothing but ruins and dead bodies. We had no way of knowing if you or your wife had survived at all, if you were among the dead... who had even caused the destruction..." I shook my head at the memory. "By the end of the day my parents got papers for Willow, passed her as my twin, and then we went back home." A sigh escaped me. "It's not like we didn't try to find you... we just had no idea how to. Charles offered to see into her memories, to get an image of you, but Willow was just recovering from the trauma and Mama didn't want to risk making it worse."
"Charles..." Erik repeated, turning sharp eyes toward the telepath. "You never told me."
"Like Rose already told you, I didn't know." Charles explained. "I knew Rose and Willow when they were little girls, and while I knew they weren't really twins, and how Will had joined the Serrure family, it wasn't something I pondered much on. Then I met you, and while I did see some of your memories about Magda and your daughter... you never wanted to talk about them and I didn't want to intrude in what was obviously a painful part of your past. I didn't make a connection until... well, I never made it, really." He shrugged. "When Rose was helping me take back control over my telepathy we ended sharing a lot of memories; some of them happened to be yours. Her own mind connected the pieces, this was shortly after we began looking for a way to free you."
Erik seemed to have no words to say to that. I could only imagine what he must be thinking, how it almost seemed like the universe had conspired against him, keeping him from his daughter... then again, the daughter he believed to have died at five was alive, healthy, happy, what else could any parent ask for?
xXx
With some help from one of Hakon's contacts we got papers for Erik (and I wasn't sure what I was supposed to think about the fact that my brother, a military man with a degree in law, knew a forger... the kind who made good forgeries too). In any case, it was how Max Eisenhardt, German immigrant, came to be. Willow and I also got new papers, in the names of Anya and Alfdis Eisenhardt. This was done for a variety of reasons. First, I knew that as an X-Woman I would be involved in a lot of stuff, and it would be probably better for everyone if I wasn't connected to the Serrures, and especially the Starks. The last one became particularly important when I learnt what exactly had happened in the last meeting between Charles and Uncle Howard.
It seemed that Charles had gone to his old family friend looking for help in opening the school. He believed that with the backing of Howard, and everything his name implied, it would make things go faster, it might also make things safer for the students. Howard not only had refused to take part in the endeavor; according to Charles he'd also made some veiled negative comments regarding gifted people. He'd even mentioned Cuba in vague terms, and how dangerous it was for people with inhuman abilities to be out and about without 'proper supervision'.
I couldn't quite believe it when I heard, all that... it just didn't sound like the Uncle Howard I knew. The man who'd known from the very beginning how different everyone in our family was, who said those differences made us special. The man who'd ended with frostbite courtesy of Hakon more than once (always on accident, of course), and every single time laughed it up as an accident and kept reassuring Hakon that he was alright and everything was just fine...
"Maybe he's like that with you because you're family..." Hank offered.
"It's entirely possible that he used to believe that, but the whole thing with Shaw and the near start of WWIII made him nervous... afraid, of what might have happened, if he hadn't been stopped." Charles offered in a soothing tone.
"It's no excuse." Erik muttered. "When judging a man you must always look at how he treats those he sees as less, rather than the ones he might consider equals... if his words regarding strangers express what he truly feels... what happens when he no longer sees Rose as family? When he turns against her? Against anyone else?"
It hurt to even consider that, for me Howard Stark would always be my uncle, the man who'd make funny faces at me, who told me that if he could go from the poor boy growing on the lower east side of Manhattan to an industrial genius and millionaire, founder of his own company, I could do anything I set my mind to; it hurt to think that one day he might see me as a freak, as dangerous... as Other.
Still, it was partly because of that, partly because I wanted to keep our family out of whatever trouble we might get into (if the government ever found out that Max Eisenhardt was actually Erik Lehnsherr it really wouldn't be good...), and partly because Anya wanted to reclaim even a small part of her past and I refused to have her be anything but my sister... and so we became Anya and Alfdis Eisenhardt (Erik didn't mind suddenly having two daughters, rather than just one... we asked him).
He wasn't too parental towards us, in the end. He recognized the fact that both of us, even Anya, had had other parents growing up, and that they'd been good. Still, he wanted to be part of his child's life, and had recognized that that life included me. So there we were.
Christmas came, then New Year, and in early January we all began talking about the possibility of reopening the Institute. Charles didn't seem surprised at all...
"I think a part of me knew this was coming, ever since I found you and your sister sitting in my parlor, last July." He admitted at some point.
Sean signed up right away, as did Hank. Sean was also a great help, getting in touch with the other veterans whom Hakon and the Commandos had helped upon returning from Vietnam. Not all were interested in the Institute, but some agreed to consider, if not teaching formally, at least helping out here and there; and some had relatives they thought would benefit from enrolling in such a school.
Once we got a long enough list of prospective students we began working on new certifications and accreditation to make sure everything would be legal. It was a lot of work, long days and late nights... it also didn't help when, after one such late night, I woke everyone hours before dawn with my screams.
I came to slowly, ignoring the high-flames across the room, and eventually realizing that I wasn't alone. Everyone was there. Sean and Erik didn't seem to quite know what to think of it all, and even Hank kept his distance; but Anya was sitting on the bed on one side of me, with Charles on his chair, as close to the other side as he could.
"Rose?" While legally my name was Alfdis, he still called me that; Chaos-Rose, had become my code-name officially.
"We need to get to Paris." I blurted out the first thing that came to mind.
"What...?" Sean was confused by that.
"The Paris Peace Accords..." I began, trying to find the right words to express how important it all was, without losing myself in the awful memories.
"That's in two days," Hank began, then revised. "Well, tomorrow actually..."
"We need to get there." I nodded emphatically.
"Why?" Erik was the one to voice the question I was sure everyone must be thinking.
"We need to stop Raven." I tried to communicate an apology to Charles's silently even as I began explaining. "She will be there... to kill Bolivar Trask."
"Trask..." Erik parroted. "Bolivar Trask, of Trask Industries?!"
"Yes, that Trask." I nodded dismissively, that wasn't the point! "Stryker will be there too, along with a lot of other military from all over the world. If Mystique succeeds in killing Trask... it will not be good."
"What did you see, exactly?" Charles asked, somewhat pointedly.
"I saw her succeed." I stared straight into his blue eyes as I said that, though refusing to let him into my head, to see anything himself. "If she does... Stryker will take over the operation, He will use her to finish a project Trask Industries has been trying to finish for years... trying and failing. Machines, called Sentinels... they will use them to hunt down those who're different. First mutants, then other gifted... anyone they consider as a risk... it'll be the end of the world."
I finally had an idea of what exactly might have caused Magneto to go back to being Erik and pronounce those fateful words, at the end of my longest vision... a part of me wished I'd never known. I had a feeling I'd be getting nightmares for weeks, possibly months.
"We'll go to Paris." Anya agreed with me. "We'll stop Raven..."
"Why stop her?" Erik's question made us all freeze.
"Erik..." Charles began, a hint of warning in his voice.
Erik either didn't hear it, or just chose to ignore it as he went on.
"Trask and his company are a threat to Raven, to me, to your school, and to every single mutant in this world Charles." Erik pointed out seriously. "You know that as well as I. Why not let Raven do what she wishes and just be there to make sure they don't capture her?"
"And make ourselves into criminals for aiding and abetting a killer?" Hank demanded.
"It will not end with Trask." I said, tiredly. "You will let her kill him, and then what? You'll kill Stryker too?"
"If he becomes a threat, of course." Erik replied, unapologetically.
"He's already a threat." Sean pointed out. "He loathes anyone different."
"That's not my point." I pressed on. "You will kill Trask and then Stryker... and when someone else takes their place, you will want to kill them too. And so on and so forth, and it will never end! This trail of death, of blood will never end!"
"They're humans, they hate us, they will destroy us if they get the chance!" Erik almost snapped. "We need to look out for our own."
It looked like Charles was about to retort, it was the same argument they always had... yet before he could, someone else intervened.
"Dadro I'm human!"
That froze everyone, especially Erik. No one could begin to imagine what he was thinking in that moment, exactly. Had he truly forgotten that Anya was human rather than a mutant? Did he see her as some kind of exception? Or had he simply become so used to the whole 'humans vs. mutants' spiel that he only argued the point for the sake of it? What did he believe in anymore? Erik Lehnsherr/Max Eisenhardt was a mutant who'd been wronged by both humans and mutants, who'd been helped by both humans and mutants; who held onto a belief of 'Us and Them' and had for so long it was hard to tell if he remembered why he supported that anymore. Would Anya's return into his life make him change his beliefs? Or would he just choose to turn his back on her in the end? Or worse even, would he choose to continue the extreme ideology, while still holding onto her, making either set of beliefs completely pointless?
xXx
Thankfully, Charles had access to a private plane, because I have no idea how we'd have gotten to Paris in time otherwise.
The 'mission' seemed a tad anti-climatic actually, especially if we compared it to Erik's rescue a little over a month before. With some trickery and fast talking, Anya and I had managed to get her, Charles, Erik and myself in (Sean and Hank were staying in the car, as they were our backup). Then Charles made sure that no one who saw us would be able to identify us afterwards, even as he tracked down Raven's presence (being careful to not quite touch her mind). We found her, impersonating a Vietnamese high-ranking military man, on the way to a meeting. While we were trying to think of a way to lure her to where we were waiting Erik simply slipped out of the room, and pulled her inside (a hand of her his/her mouth to stop any calls for help).
Mystique fought like hell against the hold, until she laid eyes on Charles, the shock was great enough she dropped the disguise completely.
"Spirits!" Anya exclaimed the moment she saw her.
For a moment it looked like Raven would say something biting, probably thinking that Anya was either afraid or disgusted by her appearance; I realized then that Raven hadn't recognized us (then again, we hadn't seen each other in more than a decade...).
"Have you no shame Auntie Raven?" Anya finished right then.
The question threw the shape-shifter for a loop.
"Auntie...?" She repeated, not quite getting it.
"She's Willow, I'm Rose." I offered, raising a hand to call her attention to me. "Though we go by Anya and Alfdis nowadays..."
"Rosie?!" She was well and truly shocked by that point. "What the hell are all of you doing here?! No, never mind. I don't have time for this, I have things to do..."
"Like killing Bolivar Trask?" Erik finished for her.
"We cannot let you do that Raven." Charles added.
Erik and I both rolled our eyes at that; yeah, because Raven was just going to accept that...
"You cannot stop me Charles!" She practically snarled at her adoptive brother. "I've been hunting the bastard down for years! I've gotten this far, and I'm not stopping now. I'm gonna kill him, I'm gonna make him pay! For Azazel, and Angel, and Emma, and all the others whose lives he's destroyed and..."
"And if you kill him you'll destroy yourself, and every other mutant on the planet." Erik told him rather bluntly.
"What?!" Raven wasn't expecting that.
"Much as I'd usually agree with you, not this time Mystique." Magneto stated in his most authoritative tone.
"Who are you to give me orders, Magneto?!" Raven retorted. "I do not follow you, not anymore. Ten years ago you left us, what few of us were left, to protect one man, one single mutant, just because he was the president. I told you it was a mistake, I told you that if you succeeded it would make no difference in the long run, and if you failed it would be the ruin of the Brotherhood. You didn't care. Well, guess what? I was right!"
"This isn't about orders." Anya intervened. "This is about safety, your own and that of every living being, mutant or not, on this planet." She stared straight at Mystique, unflinchingly even when golden eyes bore at her. "Rose has seen what will happen if you try to kill Trask today... it will not be good. Not for you, and not for the rest of the world."
"You lie!" Mystique hissed. "You're saying that just to make me stop."
"If it were a matter of making you stop, we'd have forced you already." Erik drawled.
"Raven, please..." Charles murmured. "Please, come home..."
"I don't have a home!" Raven almost screeched.
"Guys, we need to get out soon, before someone finds us here... it won't be pretty if they do." Anya said unexpectedly, after having gone to peek through the door, to make sure we hadn't been discovered just yet.
It looked like Charles was about to try and beg... when a metallic object, which looked like a paperweight or something, floated behind Raven, before hitting her on the back of the head, knocking her out.
"There, we can take her now." Erik announced.
"You do know she's gonna be furious with you when she wakes up, right?" I asked him, disbelief coloring my tone.
"What's new about that?" The master of magnetism shrugged. "At least she'll be alive and free to do so; and so will the rest of us."
In the end Charles either agreed with him or decided there simply was no point in arguing further. Erik hefted the unconscious Raven over his shoulder and we slipped out of the room as silently as we could. We were on our way to the stairs, when a voice coming from inside one of the rooms we were passing by, called my attention:
"Hello, thank you for coming." It was Bolivar Trask, he was inside that room. "Congratulations on winning this war..."
In that moment I fancied I could see the various paths the future could take, extending before me. I wasn't actually having any visions, it was just something that hit me right then and there. In most of them I did nothing, kept walking, following Charles, Erik and Anya; we left the Hotel Royal, Paris, went back to Westchester and prepared to open the school, ready to react to what might come our way... in the end I took the one path I couldn't begin to imagine where it might lead; because I knew that, insane as it might be, it was the right thing to do.
"...You'll need a new weapon for this war." Trask went on inside. "I call them Sentinels, named after the ancient guardians that stood at the gates of the Citadel..."
I blocked out his voice as he went on enlisting all the characteristics of the awful machines, all the while fighting to keep the memories of my own visions, what they'd look like, what they'd do, from overwhelming me. I tried to focus on something else, anything else, and then my eyes laid on the file on Charles's lap. Even without an actual vision, I suddenly knew what was inside it, and with that knowledge a plan solidified in my mind.
Before Charles could realize what I was doing and even begin to think about stopping me I picked the file from his lap, spun around, opened both of the white doors before me and strode inside the room like I owned the place.
Bolivar Trask broke off in the middle of saying something about the targeting system for the mutant x-gene and how there would be no civilian casualties... I could have snorted. He had no idea... in the end I didn't. I took a deep breath, forced myself to focus on exuding as much power and authority as I could (I remembered what Uncle Howard had told me once, the first time I'd had to give a lecture for credits in college, he'd told me that as long as I believed I had power, that I had authority... the people I was facing would believe it too... so I told myself to hold onto that); I sent a mental message to Charles for them all not to interfere (and to take off if something went wrong), I would be alright.
"Who are you?" William Stryker demanded.
"My name is Rose." I answered soft, but strong. "Some people call me Rose of Chaos..."
"That's a mutant name..." Stryker began.
"Is it?" I challenged, turning to look at the small device in Trask's hand. "I think your little piece of technology might disagree." I shook my head, before turning back to the others in the room, I switched to Vietnamese automatically (and wasn't that an amazing coincidence, me knowing the language at all... though to be perfectly honest, the only reason I did was because at some point during my studies I'd decided I wanted to learn a language my parents didn't already know, and Vietnamese was the first I saw). "Gentlemen, you have my most sincere apologies for barging into what I'm sure was meant to be a private meeting, without an invitation; but it is my belief that you should know the kind of man you're dealing with, before putting your nation at risk." That certainly called everyone's attention. "Mr. Trask would have you believe he's a man who's solely interested in the survival of humanity as a whole; nothing could be farther from the truth."
"You cannot tell these people that mutants don't exist!" Stryker snapped.
"I will not deny the existence of people who are different." I retorted calmly. "But then again, that's always been the case. After all, we're not all blonde, or blue eyed, or fair skinned, are we?" I ignored his attempts to interrupt me again. "I also won't deny that there are individuals around the world who are different in other ways, who hold gifts not many might be able to understand. However, it is untrue that they are the enemy, yours or mine, or anyone else's at all." As I got into the flow of things I couldn't help but relax, I believed in what I was speaking of, and that helped too. "There is both good and evil in this world, there always has been, and I dare say there always will be. And that's true for both humans and gifted. Most people with 'abilities' go on living normal lives, hardly using them at all, never hurting anyone. It is true some might try something, but then again, there are also humans who commit crimes, in the end it's exactly the same." I thought of something else then. "I know not if you're aware of this, but among the many brave soldiers, both American and Vietnamese, there are some who are indeed gifted; who over the war have used their gifts to survive themselves and help their comrades do the same, to bring honor to their respective countries... Humans and mutants are more alike than they're different, that is the truth. It's a truth that Bolivar Trask would deny you, in an attempt to further his own objectives."
"And what's that?" Someone asked abruptly.
Trask hadn't said anything at all, hadn't tried to interrupt me again, and I wasn't actually sure if that was because he didn't know Vietnamese, and as such had no idea what I was saying exactly; or if Charles had chosen to 'give me a hand' so-to-speak; I didn't stop to wonder about it.
"Research and experimentation..." With a flick of my wrist I sent the file flying, the contents going every which way across the table. "On mutants."
Gasps were soon heard all across the room as the Vietnamese contingent looked at the files, especially the pictures included, pictures of every mutant Trask and his company had captured and experimented on over the years. There were some gruesome pictures, which accounted for the reactions people were having; and while some certainly focused some on the fact that one of them had a tail, another wings, and other things; most of the whispers I heard around me were regarding the monstrous things that had been done to them.
"Are you sure of this Ma'am?" The one who looked like he might be the leader of the group asked, soberly.
"I'm afraid so, sir." I nodded, allowing the grief I myself felt at the tragedy to tint my voice. "Trask has captured, experimented on and killed more than a dozen mutants over the last five years (and that was only officially, since the company hadn't existed before then). And those are just the ones we know of. If you agree to support him, his plan for these Sentinels, it will only be a matter of time before some of your own citizens begin to disappear. And not just yours, but innocents from every country, every city in the world... Mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, children; all innocent; all who've done nothing except being born different. Since when has that been a crime? I thought we'd gotten past all that, when WWII ended."
Perhaps bringing WWII up was a bit much, but I just couldn't help myself; I wasn't sure if it was Erik's influence or my parent's past, I just couldn't help but draw the parallels, it was staggering, and also worrying...
"What about those... mutants, that might wish humans harm?" One of the others called, worried.
"Like I said before, you already have gifted serving your country." I pointed out. "It's up to you that they continue doing it, with your blessing, and their own safety." I let out a breath. "I will not tell you how to lead your own country gentlemen. I only came in here to make sure you wouldn't be conned by this man, that you wouldn't make a mistake that would end up costing so many innocent lives... we just ended a war, shouldn't we be focusing on peace, rather than on starting yet another one?"
I hesitated for a second, not quite sure what I should do. I'd gotten through the whole thing almost solely on adrenaline, and as it ran its course I couldn't help but doubt myself. Had I done the right thing? Had I done enough? And how could I leave without making it seem like I was running away and therefore ruin everything I might have achieved...?
I didn't get the chance to think about it for long, the sound of a gun cocking echoed across the room. I reacted instinctively, spinning around and throwing up a hand, enveloped in fire. The nodes of the stun-gun hit the fire, never quite touching my skin, leaving me unscathed. It also had the effect of revealing one of my powers to everyone in the room, there were a few gasps, though I couldn't detect any serious fear, mostly... mostly I could sense fascination. (Also, revealing myself as gifted had the additional effect of making it seem like Trask's little device was faulty).
*Sorry.* Charles apologized in my head. *I let them go in order to talk to you, let you know that the American military is coming.*
*It's alright.* I assured him. *No harm, no foul.*
"Very well gentlemen, I think I've overstayed my welcome." I announced. "I'll leave you to decide what you do with what you've learned today. I trust you'll do what's best for all of your people." I decided against making any special emphasis on 'all'. "Congratulations on peace."
And with nothing further to say, I walked right out of the room. Trask and Stryker looked torn for a moment, though they were soon after me (probably deciding that the Vietnamese were a lost cause, and they'd rather know what exactly I'd told them...).
"You!" Trask yelled at me, furious.
"I have a name." I retorted, turning to face him. "Though that's neither here nor there." Behind them I could see the approaching Americans, and in the last moment decided to leave them with a parting shot. "Now gentlemen, I really need to take my leave."
"You won't be leaving until we've spoken to you." Stryker hissed.
"Oh, but I'm afraid there's no time for that, Mayor." I shook my head almost patronizingly, feeling a sense of satisfaction fill me. "See, you're about to be too busy to talk to me, or even to Mr. Trask there beside you. I'm sure your superiors are quite interested in knowing what you were doing in a meeting with the Communist leaders..."
With that I turned around the corner, right as some American military reached the two men, then I was running down the hall, only stopping when I heard Charles's call in my head, slipping through a door that lead down the stairs (Charles and the others had gone ahead, down the single elevator), they were waiting me just outside the side-door, the one closest to the car.
"What the hell was that?" Erik demanded the moment I reached them.
"I honestly have no idea." I admitted, unable to keep myself from sagging as my mind registered that it was over and I was safe.
"What she did was a good thing." Charles told him quietly. "The Communist leaders listened to her, truly. They also felt disgusted by what they saw in TIs files... right now they're more likely to support mutants than to turn against them."
"Even with all they've done, even knowing what could have happened, you still insist on that ridiculous dream of integration?" Erik practically hissed.
"It's not ridiculous!" Charles and Anya defended at the same time.
A look at his daughter seemed to be enough to shut Erik up. Though the fact that the argument had even come up at all made me feel like it wasn't over just yet; and there was quite a chance things would get worse before they could get better (if they ever got better).
In the end we knew we couldn't just stay on the street, there were too many civilians around, and the military inside... so we got inside the car and drove away.
xXx
We didn't actually leave Paris that day. Right as we were arriving to the airport, one of the men there informed Charles he had a message, from the CIA. While after Cuba Moira had made sure that there would be no information on him or the children (or Erik) left, and then Charles himself had made sure she would know nothing; they still had him on file as an 'expert on mutations', with notes regarding his thesis. Since we'd traveled legally (though Charles had cited it as a small vacation to those who asked), it was no secret that we were there. The CIA were hoping he'd agree to meet with the military already on Paris to discuss Trask and his 'projects', they were also hoping he might help them get in contact with the 'Rose of Chaos'...
"It'd seem that word travels fast around here." I said in a drawl.
"Is this a good idea?" Sea inquired, unsure.
"No idea." I shrugged. "But if this helps keep mutants safe, innocents safe... we need to do it."
"And what will you do if they try to take you in?" Erik demanded.
"The operative word there is 'try'." I pointed out evenly. "If you think I'm not capable and willing of fighting to protect me and mine, you don't know me at all 'Magneto'..."
That certainly seemed to shut him up. A meeting was arranged for early the next morning.
xXx
We spent the night in a hotel near the airport, Anya and I shared a room with Raven, same as Sean and Hank, and Charles and Erik.
"Why did you do it?" Raven asked, almost as soon as we were alone.
"Why did I do what?" For a moment I wasn't sure what she was talking about.
"Go into that room, go against Trask and Stryker." She insisted.
"Why shouldn't I?" I asked in return, before taking a deep breath and elaborating. "It was the right thing to do." I shook my head. "You know, I understand what it was you wanted to do, and why. What happened to your lover..."
"How do you know about Azazel?" The shape-shifted interrupted abruptly. "Charles said you had no time to go through what was in that file but..."
"I didn't." I shook my head. "I... I didn't see it, not exactly... I'm not sure how to explain it. Aside from my visions sometimes I simply... know things. I knew already that Azazel had been captured by Trask, same as Angel, Emma, and many others... the rest... well the rest I simply knew." A sigh escaped me. "I'll be honest with you. If it had been my lover... I don't know what I'd have done." If it had been my match... better not to think about that. "So, at least mentally, I understand why you wanted to kill Trask."
"And yet you stopped me." Mystique pointed out. "Why?"
"Because I saw what became of you, had you succeeded." I told her honestly. "I've seen what becomes of the world..."
"It cannot be that bad..." She began, then cut off at my shiver.
"Will you stay?" Anya asked unexpectedly. "When we leave Paris and go back to Westchester, when we re-open the Institute, will you go with us?"
"I... I don't know." She admitted softly. "So much has happened in the last decade. I've seen so much, done so much... I don't know if I can go back."
"Nor should you." I murmured.
"Why must you see it as going back?" Anya inquired.
Before Raven could give an answer (probably she could even think one), we were interrupted by the sound of something shattering into pieces in the room next to ours, followed by shouting:
"It's not meant to be easy, Erik." Charles sounded edgy. "It's a matter of having faith!"
"That faith is going to kill you one day Charles." Erik replied, voice dark. "And I refuse to watch that happen!"
The last statement was followed by the loud slam of a door.
Anya, Raven and I didn't say a word, we just looked at each other. It seemed like things had finally snapped between Erik and Charles, and I had no idea what was going to happen next... Would they be able to fix it before the meeting with the Americans? Could their troubles be fixed at all? And if they couldn't, what did that mean for Anya and I? For the school? And especially, what would that mean for Charles?
xXx 3rd Person POV xXx
Erik was almost incandescent with rage as he stalked out of the hotel. He didn't have to walk far before reaching the closest bar. He'd every intention of getting drunk, and quite possibly picking up a fight, he was sure both would be easy enough, considering all the people around the city 'celebrating', getting drunk themselves and doing mayhem. A part of him knew Charles would disapprove of his plans, and that only seemed to make him even more determined to do it.
An hour later he wasn't quite drunk enough yet, though he was about ready to pummel something (or someone), when something completely unexpected happened: a gorgeous woman, with deep blue eyes and mussed raven black hair that barely reached her chin, wearing a black dress that most women would consider too scandalous (and few would be able to pull off) practically slid into the booth, right beside Erik. Waving at the barman while for a drink, while she moved her other hand almost too close to Erik, less than an inch from his leg.
She stopped when the drink was placed before her, and Erik decided to take the chance to leave. What he wasn't expecting was when the woman's hand shot out to hold him by his wrist. Erik could barely hold himself in check, lest he strangle the woman with the little chain around her neck, or push her earrings through her cranium...
"Take it easy." She muttered, so softly Erik was quite sure he was the only one to hear her, and in such a tone that made it obvious she wasn't drunk, at all. "It's all an act, to try and get the bastards two tables to our left off my back. I'm tired of having to turn them down. I came here to unwind, and at this pace I'm going to end up punching someone... which wouldn't be good, seeing as how I was planning on sticking around Paris for a couple more days..."
"Why me?" Erik inquired, honestly curious.
"From all the single men in this bar, you're the one who didn't look the slightest bit interested." She answered honestly. "Seeing how I'm not the slightest bit interested in you..." She shrugged. "Besides, you look menacing enough to keep the bastards away."
"I see..." Erik decided to ignore the whole thing and turned back to his own drink.
"So, why so angry?" She asked him unexpectedly.
Seeing how she'd expressed a desire for violence herself, he didn't ask where he'd gotten that idea; Erik also thought he might be drunk enough he couldn't think of why he usually wouldn't be interested in doing small talk with a complete stranger, regardless of how sexy she might be (she really wasn't his type, in the end).
"Stupid Charles and his stupid belief that faith will save us all!" He spat. "Like some kind of magic spell. That if we just have faith everything will be just fine..."
The woman seemed to actually think it over before replying:
"Well, I don't know about magic..." She said softly. "But I do know that faith can be a very powerful thing. Can motivate people to do things, to achieve objectives they would have believed impossible at some point."
"Really?" Erik snorted. "Next you're going to tell me that 'Love is all we need'... or some other hippie crap like that."
"When that love is the love of your match... yes, it's all you need." She nodded; then, before he could insult her intelligence or something like that she went on. "I know you think I'm crazy. But I know what I'm talking about."
"Really, where is your love then?" He challenged.
"That's what I'd like to know." She admitted. "Been tracking him for almost a decade, and every time I get close... he vanishes again. The closest I've gotten was in 69, I actually caught up with him, in Spain. I lost him the next day."
"Why keep searching for him?" Erik sounded honestly confused by that. "Most would say he simply doesn't wish to be found..."
"I'm not sure how much of what he's currently doing are his own wishes..." She muttered, mostly to herself, before adding: "It goes back to love, when it comes to a match, to soulmates, you do not give up, ever. No matter how hard it might, how many people and things might appear to be against you; you don't give up. It's like... like there's a force inside you that won't let you stop..."
"I don't like the idea of being manipulated..."
"No, it's not manipulation. It's all you! Because deep inside you know that it's all worth it. No matter how hard it might be, how long it might take, in the end it'll all be worth it just to be with that person..." She took a long drag out of her drink. "You're one soul in two bodies, and you know that, you can feel it..."
"We're like bookends of the same soul..." Charles had said that once...
They didn't talk anymore after that; eventually the woman took her leave, and Erik did the same, right as the bar was about to close. He never did get to pummel anything, somehow his fury had disappeared. As insane as he still thought the woman's beliefs to be (soulmates, bah!), he just couldn't stop thinking about Charles, back at the hotel, their argument, what he might be thinking after the way he'd left... would he finally decide Erik was hopeless and give up on him? Erik wasn't sure that was possible, if Charles hadn't given up on him even when he'd believed Erik to have killed Kennedy... at the same time, he knew they couldn't continue on the same path they'd been thus far. Sooner or later something would have to give, someone would have to compromise or give up on their partnership ever working (and, much as he might not want to accept it, that wasn't something the master of magnetism truly wanted).
He set to walking, letting the almost frigid temperatures sober him slowly. He didn't think he ever actually made a choice, yet somehow he found himself standing just outside the hotel not long after dawn. He bought a cup of coffee from a vendor on the street, and after thinking it over for a moment, bought a cup of tea as well.
It wasn't hard for him at all to get to the right floor, and into the bedroom. It wasn't even locked (he made a mental note to chastise Charles about that later). He was just placing the two paper cups on the bedside table, when Charles rolled out of the bathroom, half dressed, a towel around his neck. He froze in apparent shock as their eyes met.
"Erik...?" He murmured, and he sounded so lost that a part of Erik wanted to kneel before him, promise he'd never leave again, that he loved the telepath and they'd find a way to make their partnership work.
However, he still remembered all the things they kept fighting about, and while he was willing to talk it out, to find a compromise; he wouldn't just give up his side of the argument.
"Yes." Charles said suddenly.
Erik's head snapped up instantly, knowing there was only one reason why Charles would be answering unasked questions...
"I'm sorry!" The telepath cringed. "I'm truly sorry. I cannot help it. You're practically shouting your thoughts right now and..."
He remembered what Charles had explained to him about his telepathy over the last weeks. How easy it was for him to connect... and how hard to hold back; how he needed his connections, that without at least touching the surface of other people's minds they simply didn't seem real. He decided not to make a big deal of that part; they'd need to talk about it; he'd need to understand more about how Charles's telepathy worked exactly; they'd compromise... apparently they'd be compromising on a lot more than just their views about humans...
Charles didn't say anything, though Erik knew instinctively that he must have heard most of that; in the end the older mutant simply arched a brow, waiting.
"Yes, I..." Charles swallowed heavily. "I did hear most of that. I didn't mean to, I just..."
"I know." Erik interrupted him, more softly that he was planning to. "We'll have a long talk about that. But I'm willing to let it be for now."
Charles just nodded. There was so much he wanted to say, questions he wanted so much to ask; yet he was too afraid to say or do something wrong, something that might cause Erik to storm off again, the mere possibility of him not coming back the next time...
"I'm not leaving." Erik might not be a telepath, but he could read Charles well enough. "I might get angry at you sometimes. I might need time to vent, take a walk to calm down, maybe even hit something... but I won't leave you, I... I won't abandon you, not again."
"Oh Erik..." The telepath's voice broke into a near sob.
He wasn't sure how it happened, exactly, but Erik somehow found himself on his knees in front of Charles's wheelchair.
"I still think your faith in humans might kill you someday..." The master of magnetism added for good measure. "And I'll be here, to make sure you're safe..."
Charles couldn't help it, he just sort of fell into Erik's arms, embracing him and kissing him with everything he had.
When the two men finally stepped out of the bedroom and joined the rest for breakfast nearly an hour later no one said a thing (though Charles was quite sure that they'd all heard at least the tail end of their argument the previous night), perhaps it was better that way.
xXx Rose's POV xXx
Raven and Anya hadn't said a word about what we'd heard the night before, when Charles and Erik finally joined us for breakfast. I was so happy that he'd chosen to stay that I didn't say anything either. It was good to know that their bond was strong enough to pull them back together, regardless of how badly their fights might get... it gave me hope for the future.
The meeting with the Americans went nothing like the one with the Vietnamese; on the one hand because it wasn't only Americans, representatives of other governments, like the British and the French, were present as well; on the other, it was Charles who took the lead on that one. As Prof. Charles Francis Xavier, Dr. on Biology, Genetics and Psychology. The CIA remembered that he'd been consulted regarding the matter with Shaw and the Russians in 1962; though they didn't remember how that had ended exactly (and would never think to ask).
There was a slight disagreement in the ranks, right before we went in. The group as a whole seemed to disagree with the plan of Charles and I going in alone; when Erik had insisted on going in, Charles had tried to remind him of his own status, to which Erik had replied that if Charles had truly done what he claimed (blurring everyone's memory of Magneto just enough no one would be able to recognize him), then they'd nothing to worry about. As far as the world was concerned, Erik Lehnsherr was dead, he was Max Eisenhardt. Of course, once that point was made, the others insisted on accompanying us as well.
We probably painted an interesting picture as we went in, with Charles in the middle of the group, Erik/Max on his right and myself on his left, Anya, Hank, Sean and Raven behind us (I had no idea what Erik and Charles said to convince her to stay... and to not kill us for stopping her in her mission, but she was still there). To make a point we were all wearing X-Men suits, even Charles himself. Yes, I was sure we painted an interesting picture indeed.
Nothing could have ever prepared me for what I saw the moment we were inside the room. The Director of the CIA was present, along with a small retinue, the British Ambassador in Paris and some members of the French government; there was also a group of American Military, who seemed to have been pulled there directly from Vietnam... Hakon Serrure was in that group.
The moment our eyes met I nearly stumbled, probably would have if Charles hadn't discreetly pressed a hand to my hip; beside me I could sense Anya too stopping in shock.
*Rose...?* Charles began, questioningly.
*It's alright.* I half-lied. *I'll be fine. Stick to the plan.*
I could almost hear my brother whispering, with his usual half-concealed amusement: 'what chaos have you been causing now Rosie Rose?' Yet I knew that couldn't happen, because for my own good, and especially his, no one could know we were related.
"Ladies and gentlemen." Charles greeted the group, very formal. "I am Charles Xavier, Dr. in Biology and Genetics. I believe you were interested in a meeting."
"We were indeed interested in a meeting with yourself, and the lady who called herself the Rose of Chaos, earlier today." One of the military men said. "I however, do not know what the rest of them are doing here."
"You of course wouldn't expect us to come here on our own." Charles spoke before Erik could say something probably cutting. "You've brought your own team of trusted associates, we've only done the same. In fact, I believe some introductions might be in order."
There were some introductions, though mostly limited to the people in command. Hakon was named in passing as a Lt. Colonel in charge of a unit of 'gifted' soldiers.
"Well, you already know who I am, of course." Charles stated. "As for my companions. At my right is my colleague Max Eisenhardt, his daughter: Anya; and some of our X-Men: Mystique, Beast and Banshee."
He didn't signal to anyone when saying each name, and none of them called their attention particularly. It was better that way.
"As for the Rose..." Charles added, giving me the opening to handle that part however I wished.
I knew what I had to do, and still, it was hard...
"They call me the Rose of Chaos." I introduced myself. "I suppose, for meetings such as this, you may call me Alfdis Eisenhardt."
The obvious connection was made, and just like that, with a few words, I claimed Max and Anya as my family, and cut ties with all others...
The meeting went well-enough. Charles expressed his plans for reopening the Institute and, at Max's insistence persuaded the CIA and military to grant the school the status of haven, of refuge (with benefits close to those of a foreign embassy... almost but not quite), thankfully with no actual manipulation required. There was also talk about the X-Men, a team that would be expected to help deal with any rogue mutants that might pop up; Charles and Max both agreed to it, with the proviso that the government would oversee only, and would not try to force them to turn any mutants over (criminals or not); a secondary proviso was also made if the mutant in question happened to have killed humans intentionally rather than accidentally (in which case they were to be treated like any human killer).
By the end of the negotiations it was obvious that they hadn't all gotten exactly what they wanted, but they were unlikely to get a better deal, even Max could see that.
Hakon Serrure, of all people, was chosen to be the first military liaison with the X-Men; with Moira McTaggert backing him up with the CIA. They both promised to do what they could to help and not interfere in 'mutant affairs' unless it was a matter of life or death.
Charles and I silently agreed that Fate must be laughing at us both.
Once the meeting was over we each took our leave, though we soon ended up in a different room, where Hakon and Moira joined us. The first thing Charles did was apologize to her, pressing a hand to her face as he unsealed the memories from Westchester and Cuba... something that was followed by a resounding slap.
"Told you that would happen." Sean's deadpan broke the ensuing silence.
Moira, for her part, looked like she wasn't sure if she should be shrieking at Charles for violating her mind, or trying to see it all from his point of view... truth be told, regardless of how much she might get it, in the end he'd still violated her mind, her trust.
*Hey!* The telepath in question complained inside my head.
*Sorry Charles.* I replied, not sorry at all, and he knew it. *You know I have no trouble with you being in my head half the time... but there's a different between picking surface thoughts, those are pretty much a part of you... and actually diving into someone's mind, taking their memories, changing them... because if one cannot even trust themselves, what then can we trust?* I shook my head, mostly to myself. *It's not like I don't understand why you did it, you know I do. I'm quite aware of what could have happened if someone like Stryker had pressed her, possibly even tortured her while trying to get to you. But that doesn't change that you used your powers against her, without her consent, or even her knowledge. You pretty much did the very thing that most of those humans are afraid of mutants doing...*
Charles had no reply for that, I knew he wouldn't. And really, that I might be capable of some rather 'questionable' acts (like attacking a military convoy and freeing a convicted fellon... and nevermind that he didn't kill Kennedy, he still killed other people, a lot of other people), didn't mean I was in any way foolish or naïve enough not to realize why such things might be wrong. It just meant that I decided something else was more important. It probably meant that I wasn't exactly 'good', but it's not like I was striving to be a paragon of virtue or anything; I was quite aware of my own faults, always had been.
I left Charles to deal with things with Moira (while Erik laughed at him), and instead Anya and I approached our brother.
"Oh little sisters, what a chaos you've unleashed." He commented, and he sounded more amused than annoyed, which helped settle me; particularly when he focused on me. "Did you see this last year? Was that why you did it?"
"Not at all." I admitted softly. "I... I think I saw the end of the world. Not that there was much to see, in the end... but the point remains."
"You never said that." Hakon murmured quietly. "According to Mama all you said was that a friend needed help..."
"And he did." I nodded emphatically. "It's complicated."
"They're a match, are they not?" Hakon inquired, apropos of nothing.
I was so shocked by the question that for a moment I couldn't think how to answer.
"I may not be able to see bonds the way you, Mama and Papa can... but having met matches in the past, I can see it." Hakon went on. "In the way they look at each other, the way they stand, the way they move, always in each other's orbit..."
"Well, I hope it's not that obvious to the rest of the world, otherwise they'll be arrested for gross indecency or some other ridiculous charges." Anya huffed.
"I'm sure they're capable of discretion." Hakon nodded dismissively. "They'll have your support, the support of their family..."
And just like that, the reminder of what I'd done; of what both Anya and I'd done...
"You understand why I did it, don't you?" I asked him very quietly. "It's not that I don't love you, all of you. It's just..."
"Safer this way." He finished for me. "For all of us. Especially after what Uncle Howard did years ago..."
"Why did he do that?" Anya asked abruptly. "Why did he say those awful things? I mean, he never seemed to have a problem with us..."
"He still doesn't." Hakon assured us. "It's not that Uncle Howard hates mutants, he's just afraid. He knows that not everyone may be as accepting of those different. Mama and Papa have always done their best to protect us, and they taught us to do the same; but Charles... he's so much of a dreamer. I think Uncle Howard was afraid that if he got used to being accepted by people in power, he might end up sharing his secrets with the wrong person. Someone who might use that confidence against him, and against his charges..."
"So what, Uncle Howard was trying to teach him a lesson or something?" Anya didn't sound too convinced as he said it.
"Being cruel to be kind..." I murmured softly, understanding.
"Yes." Hakon nodded. "Awful as it might seem, Charles needed to learn to keep that sort of information private; for his own safety, and that of the students." He made a pause before adding. "He's hoping you'll allow him to make some 'anonymous donations' in the future, though."
"I understand why he did it." I nodded. "Much as I might wish it weren't necessary, that Charles could know his friend doesn't hate him... it might be better this way in the long run. Perhaps some day in the future..."
"Perhaps." Hakon nodded, though I could tell he didn't really believe it. Then he changed the topic. "So, you're off to be teachers, both of you."
"Something like that, yes." Anya nodded. "I like the idea."
"Me too." I agreed. "I think we'll be able to do some good."
"I think so too." He nodded. "Just, never forget that whatever names you might carry, you will always have more family who loves you."
"We know." Anya and I called in sync.
"Guys." Hank interrupted softly, sheepish. "We gotta go."
Quiet goodbyes were said, and soon we were all on our way. Erik and Raven were still with us when we boarded the plane back to New York, and while I had no idea what the future might have in store for us exactly, I believed it'd be good. I had faith in them, in all of us.
IMPORTANT things first: this chapter marks the end of what could be considered the first part of Bouquet... so, next week we're going back to Fate and Destiny, though only for a couple of chapters, as we take in Nightingale's, Loki's and other's reactions to Rose's and Willow's departure and actions. In three weeks we'll be back here, because there's a lot yet to come with Rose and the X-Men (and Willow, and everyone else...).
So, that's that for warnings, I think. See ya next week in Fate and Destiny!
