Hihi! not my favorite chapter by a long shot...Thanks for all the reviews and all you readers! No translations this time but as always...Enjoy!
"Stop fidgeting Lily-Bear!" Charles said as he straightened the big red bow in her long black-gold hair.
"Charles, you've done everything but dust her with gold…" Erik said walking into the room with a black suit jacket for Charles.
"Can we do that?" Charles asked seriously looking up at the tall dark mutant. Erik laughed and swept Lily up into his arms, rescuing her from Charles' fluttering.
"What? I want her to make a good impression on Julia…" Charles grumbled as he fixed his cuffs and put his jacket on.
'Mummy's being a fussbudget.' Lily thought, sticking her tongue out at Erik. He stuck his tongue out at her then flinched when she licked his nose.
"Nyah! Go mess with Alex!" Erik said putting her on the ground and patting her bottom as she ran out of the room.
"Is everyone ready?" asked Charles, fixing his collar and dusting himself off.
"Yes…I still think you should have told Julia about Lily's mutation." Erik replied giving Charles a look.
"She wouldn't have believed me…even if I could have found the right words. 'Dear Julia, by the way your daughter also has the potential to become one of the strongest telekinetic telepaths in the world. What is that may you ask? A death sentence.' She wouldn't have even come here if I'd had written that." Charles said angrily. Erik rolled his eyes and caught him by the arm before he could leave.
"You wouldn't have written that and she may have come thinking we were all insane, but at least she would be prepared." Erik said with a hard look. "I want her to love Lily just the way she is, but we both know that probably won't happen."
"Oh so now you can see the future?" Charles said pulling his arm away from Erik and walking out of the room.
"No…but I do know someone…" Erik said quietly watching him go.
Everyone waited in the living room, on edge, for Julia's arrival. Alex, Raven and Hank were having a heated discussion about Visible versus Invisible mutations, Charles was teaching Lily how to play chess properly with Erik helping her, and Sean was wearing a hole in the floor with his incessant pacing.
"She should have been here by now. She must be two hours late!" Sean said biting his nails. Erik looked over at him in slight annoyance and tossed a book at the nervous boy.
"She said she'd be here at one, it is now…twelve forty-five, sit down and read something. You're wearing a hole in the floor." He said returning to the chess game.
Fifteen minutes later the door-bell rang and everyone went silent as Charles stood up to answer the door. He opened it to reveal a young dark-haired women with huge purple eyes, standing on the front step, wearing a well-made tailored dress suit and holding a briefcase. She looked very business like and professional as she stared at Charles with piercing eyes.
"Miss. Vanderhousen, I'm glad you could make it." Charles said with a disarming smile at the beautiful women. She merely looked at him with cynicism before walking into the house. She looked around for a moment before resting her eyes on the gathered mutants.
"If you would please come this way…" Charles said putting a hand on her back, trying to direct her towards the library.
"No, I think not." She said her voice filled with detachment as she stared at each person critically. "Here is as good as anyplace. Which one is she?"
Erik narrowed his eyes and pulled Lily into his lap as she put her arms around his arm.
"She's with Erik at the moment…would you like a…closer look?" Charles asked with slight confusion.
"Yes…Come here child." Julia said putting her briefcase down and placing her hands on her hips. Lily slowly wiggled down from Erik's lap and walked silently over to the cold woman. She looked up at her with dislike and anger on her face.
"Hold out your arms and turn." Julia instructed as Erik's face became more and more agitated. Lily did as she was told but looked more and more angry as she did.
"Now…Read my mind…" Julia said, shocking everyone in the room. She looked around with a faint smile on her lips as Lily crossed her arms.
"Yes I know all about you…and you Professor X." She said with a cruel smile. "Do as I say girl!"
"No." Lily said calmly.
"Excuse me?"
"No."
"Would you like to change your answer?" Julia said dangerously.
"No."
"Why you…Fine, get her things we are leaving." Julia said to Charles. Erik stood up as the rest of the kids gasped and began protesting.
"You can't take her! She's our little sister…You can't have her." They all said as Erik picked her up in his arms.
"Shut up!" Julia snapped at them. "I can and will take her. Legally she's mine and I can do what ever I want…So I'm going to take her."
"No." Lily said again, putting her arms around Erik's neck and leaning her head on his shoulder. Julia looked at her with annoyance a moment before turning to Charles again.
"Get her things, I'm taking her." She said. Charles frowned and put his fingers to his temple looking even more confused.
"No, you're not…you're trying to scare her…why do you want her to read your mind?" Charles said removing his fingers as Julia began to look frightened.
"None of your business, Xavier." She said finally raising an eyebrow attempting to regain the upper hand.
"Oh I think it is…you have adoption papers in the briefcase and you seem…terrified of all of us…Why are you really here, Julia?" Charles asked motioning Erik to sit back down as he took a seat himself and put his finger tips together. Julia's terror came fully out as everyone relaxed and looked at her like predators would their prey.
"I-I…I was told to come…" She stammered.
"By?" Charles asked never taking his eyes off of her.
"I-I was told b-by…um…a man…"
"Liar."
"B-by a w-woman…"
"Who?" Erik asked dangerously.
"I-I don't know her name…" Julia said looking at Erik and shaking.
"Erik…let me." Charles said standing again and advancing toward Julia. She backed up a step while Charles smiled reassuringly at her and held his hands on either side of her head.
"Just relax…I'm not…"
"Wait Mummy." Lily said jumping out of Erik's arms and walking up to them. "Let me."
"Are you sure?" Charles asked glancing down at her small form.
"Uh huh." She said as Charles picked her up and held her up to Julia's face. Lily put her hands on the women's shoulders and took a deep breath.
"I'm not going to hurt you, but if you struggle against the intrusion I won't be able to help what happens." She said putting her forehead to Julia's.
'Iwantyouformyself…no you don't…yesIdo…no, you really don't…IcouldtakeyouifIwanted…I'd like to see you try. What did you want me to see?…Theyknowaboutallthis…Who's they?…Amanlookingformutants…You want to protect me?…No, I can see you just don't want me to die…that'snottrue…Don't lie to me, you owe me…Icouldn'tkeepyou…You didn't try…Icouldn'tgoagainstmymother…You could have, you didn't want to…NoIdidn't…Then why now…Then tell them that…I'mafraidofthem…You should be…'
Lily opened her eyes and stared into Julia's with a hardness in them that hadn't been there before. Julia's eyes shined with tears as she pulled Lily into her arms and held her there for a moment. Lily laid her head on Julia's shoulder a moment before pushing away from her and reaching out to Charles. He took her from Julia and passed her over to Erik.
"I really…I guess there really isn't an excuse for what I'm doing, is there?" She said wiping her eyes as she looked at Charles shaking his head. "This is a school for mutants?"
"For gifted youngsters…and it will be." Erik said softening his look at Lily's request. Julia nodded and pulled several sheets of paper from her briefcase along with a pen.
"Sign this one, this one, initial this." She said handing the papers to Charles first. He signed them with an angry flourish before handing them back to Erik. Julia looked at them for a moment before comprehension dawned on her face.
"Oh…I see, and the rest of you are ok with this?" She asked the others. They stared at her like she had two heads before Alex took a breath.
"The rest of the world hates and fears us and you're asking if we care that two men love each other?" He asked looking at her with a raised eyebrow.
"Stupid question?" She asked with small smile.
"You think?" Raven said with a laugh. Charles handed the pen back to Julia and moved to show her the door.
"She told me to tell you that they were coming…and that nothing lasts forever." She said before leaving the room.
"Who?" Erik asked with a hint of fear in his voice.
"A women…with red hair and green eyes. She was the one who told me to come find you...She frightened me a hell of a lot more then you do. No offense." She said sadly before she walked out of the mansion to never be seen again by any of the mutants in the room.
"Well that was a disaster." Charles said as he came back into the room, flopping down into a chair and pulling his tie and collar open.
"Could have been worse." Erik said looking at one of the adoption papers closely.
"Yeah she could have taken Lily away." Sean said watching Lily put the chess board back together.
"Charles…did you know Lily doesn't have a proper name?" Erik asked handing the paper to him. Charles looked at it for a moment before handing it back.
"And?"
"We could name her." Erik said picking up a pen and looking at the telepath. Charles looked thoughtful for a moment before holding out his hand for the pen and paper. He wrote something down after a moment and handed it back before walking out of the room.
"What did he write?" Raven asked coming over to look.
"Lily Edie Sharon Xavier Lensherr." Erik said looking at the small girl who had finished setting the chess board up.
"Wanna play?" she asked with a smile.