WHEN I LOOK IN THE MIRROR
Hank
Hank was brushing his fur down in the mirror with a hairbrush. He looked at his reflection and sighed.
It wasn't fair.
He had everything, a career he loved, students that he had enjoyed teaching. He had liked his life. Then the beast within him finally broke free, and his life was never the same.
He remembered how all his life even though he was smart was also vary athletic. He remembered being one of the stars of the football team in high school and in collage. He remembered how he seemed so naturally strong. He never suspected that it was a prelude to something else.
He never dreamed of the pain. It came in his senior year in collage. He had terrible pain at times, that would engulf his whole body. When he went to the doctors they told him nothing was wrong.
But it came again, each time worse than before. That was the day he meet Charles. He was a just young professor then, only had his degree in mutation and genetics for a few years.
Yet he seemed to know what was going on. He confronted Hank about his theory that he was in fact a mutant, and was changing.
He had laughed at it, until he heard the Professor speak in his head. That had shut him up. Together after hours they would do research on him. He had to quiet the team, because it took up too much time.
The team didn't like it but to Hell with them, this was his life.
It took months, but they had found it. The X-gene. The cause for it all, and what's worse Hanks mutation was increasing.
One day he woke up with hair all over his arms and his fingernails were longer. He thought he was changing into a monster. He had never been more scared.
Luckily he had perfected something that although wouldn't get rid of the X- gene, would suppress it in him. He took it without a second thought.
Xavier was disappointed that he would just hide what he was, but he did understand his feelings.
They had kept in touch in the years, and Hank went into teaching. HE went to Bayville, so as to help Xavier keep on eye on his students.
He knew what life was like to always hide what you were. He felt he had to help them out, even if they hadn't known it at the time.
Then the formula stopped working and the creature within him broke free.
Now he was trapped forever in this form.
Now he had to hide from the world constantly. They only saw the monster not the man trapped inside. The world was a cruel place not only to children but also to adults.
And this new body of his was a mess to keep up. He had to talk to Kurt about how to straighten body hair, and that was a conversation he had never thought he would have.
He looked once more at his image. He could see the sadness in his eyes, and the despair on his face. He never wanted this, who would.
But this was who he was, and he would live with it. If he showed how he felt about his mutation to the children, how would they react, some of them have a hard enough time as it was, and they needed to see that others could coop with it.
Although he missed his old life, at least here he knew he was reaching students and helping to mold their lives into something great. That was the dream he had when he became a teacher.
Now he still was but only slightly differently now. A genuine smile crossed his face, although slightly small.
Maybe his life wasn't perfect anymore, but at least he was doing something worthwhile with it, and he could live with that.
Hank
Hank was brushing his fur down in the mirror with a hairbrush. He looked at his reflection and sighed.
It wasn't fair.
He had everything, a career he loved, students that he had enjoyed teaching. He had liked his life. Then the beast within him finally broke free, and his life was never the same.
He remembered how all his life even though he was smart was also vary athletic. He remembered being one of the stars of the football team in high school and in collage. He remembered how he seemed so naturally strong. He never suspected that it was a prelude to something else.
He never dreamed of the pain. It came in his senior year in collage. He had terrible pain at times, that would engulf his whole body. When he went to the doctors they told him nothing was wrong.
But it came again, each time worse than before. That was the day he meet Charles. He was a just young professor then, only had his degree in mutation and genetics for a few years.
Yet he seemed to know what was going on. He confronted Hank about his theory that he was in fact a mutant, and was changing.
He had laughed at it, until he heard the Professor speak in his head. That had shut him up. Together after hours they would do research on him. He had to quiet the team, because it took up too much time.
The team didn't like it but to Hell with them, this was his life.
It took months, but they had found it. The X-gene. The cause for it all, and what's worse Hanks mutation was increasing.
One day he woke up with hair all over his arms and his fingernails were longer. He thought he was changing into a monster. He had never been more scared.
Luckily he had perfected something that although wouldn't get rid of the X- gene, would suppress it in him. He took it without a second thought.
Xavier was disappointed that he would just hide what he was, but he did understand his feelings.
They had kept in touch in the years, and Hank went into teaching. HE went to Bayville, so as to help Xavier keep on eye on his students.
He knew what life was like to always hide what you were. He felt he had to help them out, even if they hadn't known it at the time.
Then the formula stopped working and the creature within him broke free.
Now he was trapped forever in this form.
Now he had to hide from the world constantly. They only saw the monster not the man trapped inside. The world was a cruel place not only to children but also to adults.
And this new body of his was a mess to keep up. He had to talk to Kurt about how to straighten body hair, and that was a conversation he had never thought he would have.
He looked once more at his image. He could see the sadness in his eyes, and the despair on his face. He never wanted this, who would.
But this was who he was, and he would live with it. If he showed how he felt about his mutation to the children, how would they react, some of them have a hard enough time as it was, and they needed to see that others could coop with it.
Although he missed his old life, at least here he knew he was reaching students and helping to mold their lives into something great. That was the dream he had when he became a teacher.
Now he still was but only slightly differently now. A genuine smile crossed his face, although slightly small.
Maybe his life wasn't perfect anymore, but at least he was doing something worthwhile with it, and he could live with that.