Hello again friends! If you've made it this far then, I'm assuming you're enjoying it….or at I have you intrigued. I hope you keep enjoying it! As always, I claim no rights to Xmen, it's Characters or anything you may find familiar. Xoxo-NickyLynn
By the time they made it back to Westchester, the sun had already begun to set, illuminating the grand mansion with soft hues of pink and gold. Zezelia sat in the backseat looking out the window with her jaw hung open. When Charles said that they would be going to his childhood home, somehow she didn't quite picture something this….grandiose.
Erik chucked in the seat in front of her as he watched her reaction as they pulled up the long driveway. Suddenly aware of her mouth hanging open, she snapped it shut and slid her vision to him. "You're kidding me, right?" she said in disbelief. "You live here?" she said, directing the question to Charles.
"We." Charles corrected. "We live here." He said, casting her a bright smile as they came to a stop.
Zezelia didn't hesitate to throw the door open and hop out of the car. She spun in a slow circle, taking in every detail of the property that she could see before staring up at the imposing building once again.
"Not quite the same childhood that we had, is it?" Erik said quietly in her ear, as he came to stand beside her.
Zezelia looked up at him out of the corner of her eye, her mind drifting back to the hell they had managed to crawl out of. "No. No it isn't" she finally said, with a shake of her head.
Charles made his way past the two of them, stuffing the keys into his jacket pocket. "Well come on then." He said, nodding his head towards the direction of the entrance.
Zezelia followed behind Erik as they made their way up the steps and made their way into the home. Her admiration of the inside of the home was short-lived however as she was hit with a wave of voices upon entering the home. And not the normal kind of voices, either. They were all in her head. She could hear more voices than she could sort through, all of them lapping over each other. Charles turned to say something to her when a loud squeal interrupted him as a beautiful blonde woman, who still looked to be quite young came rushing at them, throwing herself around Charles's shoulders. Charles grunted at the impact but soon had a smile stretched across his face as he returned the embrace.
"You're back!" she said, drawing herself off of him. "Is this must be-" the blonde began turning her attention to Zezelia. She stopped mid-sentence when she fully took her in though. Zezelia could hear the alarm in the other girl's head as she looked up and down the strange woman's body, covered head to foot in dried blood. Seeing herself from another person's perspective was odd to her to say the least. And she had honestly forgotten just how bad she must have looked to a stranger. She looked down at her red-stained clothes that had been torn in several places, pulling at the ruined fabric.
Luckily for her, Charles interrupted her thoughts. "This is Zezelia." He said, gesturing towards her. "Zezelia, this is my little sister Raven."
"Hi." Raven said, unsurely, looking from her brother to the woman in front of her.
Zezelia was suddenly hit with a barrage of thoughts from the blonde. "Who is she? What happened to her? Why does she look like that? What exactually did Charles get involved with now? Her eyes are so cold."
Zezelia stiffened as Raven's thoughts slammed into her, and mixed with the voices of Erik, Charles and several others emanating from deeper within the mansion, she suddenly found it hard to breathe. Charles could feel her unease, and in an attempt to try to calm the situation, he placed a hand on Raven's shoulder, gaining her attention. "Perhaps you could be so kind as to lend Zezelia some of your clothes." He said.
"Oh!" Raven said, snapping out of her thoughts. "Yeah, of course! I'll see what I can round up." She said, giving Zezelia a smile before turning to leave.
"Oh-preferably something with long sleeves!" Charles called after her.
Raven gave him a thumbs up over her shoulder. Zezelia watched her retreating form before giving Charles a small smile. "Thanks." She told him. "I don't suppose there's somewhere I could take a shower too?"
"Of course! Erik, will show you the way. Erik?" Charles said, looking over to the man.
"Yes, of course, follow me." Said Erik and he moved past Charles, signaling for her to follow.
Zezelia followed his broad back as he led her deeper into the mansion. If possible, the place seemed even bigger on the inside. An endless maze of halls, rooms and countless things that kept drawing Zezelia's attention here and there. She was led up to a second floor and through a hall lined with doors on either side.
"These are where most of us have been roomed." He explained. "Charles is there," he said pointing out a door. "I'm down there." He pointed further down the hall. "And this," he said coming to a stop in front of a door on the right. "This is you." He said pushing the door open to reveal a large bedroom.
There was a large, beautiful bed, covered with thick deep maroon bedding. An ornate dresser with a large mirror attached to it. A couple of tables sat on either side of the bed with décor items strategically placed here and there. A few paintings of flowers and such hung neatly on the walls and a beautiful curtain was pulled back to reveal a large window that took up a great deal of the far wall. Her eyes cast about the room, taking in all the details surrounding her.
"There's a full bathroom in here." Erik said moving to the opposite end of the room and pushing open a door. He flipped on the light switch and Zezelia was surprised at how large it was, the light shining brightly against white tiled floor making if feel open and inviting. "There's fresh towels and soaps in here, along with a few other things."
Zezelia's eyebrows pulled together as she watched him pointing out the items as he spoke, before he came back into the main room. "This is all mine?" she asked in disbelief.
"It's a bit to take in I know." He told her, coming to stand in front of her. "I'm still trying to get use to this all." He confessed.
"I feel as though at any minute I'm going to wake up and realize this has all been one crazy dream." She said, eyes bouncing around the room once again.
"I know the feeling." He said, gazing down at her. She brought her eyes back up to his and her breath stuck in her throat as she realized how close he was. He reached up to cup her cheek, the sudden need to feel the realness of her over taking him. Before he could make contact with her skin though, she flinched away from his reach. He paused in his actions, thinking better of himself before he dropped his hand. "I should really be getting in the shower." She muttered.
Erik took a step back and nodded in understanding. "I'll go check on where Raven's at with those clothes." He told her, making his way out of the room, shutting the room behind himself.
Once the door latched behind him and she heard his footsteps fade away, Zezelia let out a breath and sat heavily on the edge of the bed. She hung her head in her hands as she raked her nails through her hair, closing her eyes for a moment. Once she collected her thoughts enough, she let her hands fall into her lap with a smack and lifted her head back up, pulling in a deep breath.
She reached down and started undoing the laces of her boots before kicking them off and setting them neatly at the end of the bed. She pushed herself up and walked over to the bathroom. She pushed the door shut slightly behind her before catching her reflection in the mirror and audibly groaned. No wonder Raven had been so distressed upon meeting her. With all the blood and dirt caking her skin, and matting down her hair in a disheveled fashion, she looked like absolute shit.
She began tearing off the layers of ruined clothing, thankful her gloves seemed to manage to make it out intact, at least. Once all the clothes were off she walked over to the shower stall before twisting the handles until water flowed from the shower head. She submersed herself under the stream of water and let out a contented sigh as the hot water beat against her flesh. The water pooling around her feet soon ran red as the water began washing away the layers of filth covering her skin. She scrubbed herself until her skin was pink and raw, using a great deal of the sweet-smelling soaps that she had been thankfully provided.
Once she was scrubbed to satisfaction, she got out, wrapped a towel around her frame and poked her head back into the bedroom. She was happy to find a neatly folded pile of clothes awaiting her on her bed. She padded her way over to them, picking up the fabric and holding it up to examine it. She found a pair of grey sweatpants and a long-sleeved white shirt and quickly pulled them on.
The pants fit perfectly around her form as she pulled them over her legs and the shirt fit snug around her chest, her only disappointment being the shirt was quite low cut, leaving far too much skin showing for her comfort. She glanced into the mirror over the dresser, her eyes drawn to the white, swollen flesh that could be seen peeking out from the corner of the neckline. She began tugging on the fabric to try to adjust is the best she could to cover the bullet wound before she finally gave up with a sigh. She ran her fingers through her wet hair using them as a makeshift brush. Once she was satisfied, she made her way back over to the large mattress and none-to-gently threw herself back into it's soft embrace. She let out a sigh, as she stared up at the decorative ceiling before she let her eyelids slide shut, in desperate need of at least a few hours of sleep.
She was running. Running through a forest, leaves and branches leaving scratches along her face and arms as she brushed past them frantically. She was running from something. Or someone. She couldn't remember what it was that scared her so much, but she knew she had to get far away.
Light filtered in through a row of trees to her left and she made her way towards it, trying to find her escape. She emerged from the tree line and burst into an open field. Long yellow grass swayed back and forth in the gentle breeze, filling the whole area with a soft rustling. It was calm here. Relaxing. It was almost as if she had been transported to a completely different place. The fear that had fueled her just moments ago was soon replaced with a strange serenity.
She walked out into the meadow, her hands held out to the side, feeling the tassels tickle her hands as she brushed past. She tilted her head back, feeling the sun warm her skin as she closed her eyes and took in a deep breath. She didn't know where this place was or how she ended up here, but she never wanted to leave.
A smile crept onto her face as she felt a breeze blow against her face. She brought her face back down and opened her eyes only for her smile to drop. There standing a few feet in front of her was….well…HER. She stared at her, as her other self stared back. The other her stood wearing the stained grey clothing she use to be forced to wear while being held captive by Schmidt. Her face was younger than it should have been, and her hair hung loosely around her shoulders, it blowing ever so slightly in the cooling breeze.
"Erik." The other Zezelia said, her voice eerily soft. She held out her hand, beckoning her to come with a soft smile. Zezelia felt her feet carrying her towards the strange version of herself. Her other self's smile fell in an instant as a darkness filled the sky. "You left me."
"I didn't-no, I'm here now." The real Zezelia said, though her voice sounded strange to her own ears.
"Go." The other Zezelia said, a pool of red beginning to seep through the front of her shirt and spreading until her entire front become saturated in red. "You left me." She said again, this time anger lacing her voice. She felt herself shaking her head and began walking forward, reaching an arm out towards the other her. She froze when she noticed the other her holding a pistol, aiming in straight in her direction. "GO ERIK!" she screamed before a bang echoed through the clearing and a searing hot pain tore through her chest.
Zezelia shot up, gasping, trying to reorient herself back into reality. A dream. It was just a dream. A dream that was admittedly vastly different than any other she had before. She took in long deep breaths, replaying the images in her head, trying to make sense of them. She froze when a thought struck her. The Zezelia from her dream had called her Erik. Perhaps, it hadn't been a dream at all. Or at least, not HER dream.
"Great." She mumbled, sliding a hand down her face. "Not only do I have to deal with my own nightmares, now I get to witness everyone else's too." One thing was for sure. She was NOT going back to bed.
She kicked the sheets off that had been tangled around her feet and glanced at the clock next to her bed. 4:07. She let out a sigh before running a hand through her hair and placing her feet on the carpet below her. She bent down to grab her boots before slipping them onto her feet and making her way from the room. She quietly latched the door behind sending a glance down the hall towards Erik's door before turning and walking down the hall, retracing the steps from last night.
As quietly as she could, she made her way through the mansion, exploring as many rooms as she could, taking the time alone to get a feel for the people she had aligned herself with. She stopped every so often to examine a photo, or trinket and couldn't help but wonder what it must be like to live a life such as one they had. Being able to display your happy memories around your house with photos from your past. Filling your home with nick-nacks and trinkets from your travels and adventures. A large part of her couldn't help but wish she had lived a life such as this and she hoped they knew just how lucky they were.
Eventually she found herself pushing open a door that led to a smaller room, lined with bookshelves and a large desk. She surmised that this must have been Charles's office. She felt a sudden twinge of guilt and wondered if she should leave and respect his privacy, but another part of her, a larger part, was intensely curious about the telepath. She slowly wandered around, her fingers brushing along the spines of the books, every so often pulling out and examining ones that particularly caught her eye before returning them. The walls had been decorated with certificates and papers all filled with Charles's name. "Genetics…." She began, listing off the names of all the subjects she came across. "Biophysics…. psychology…..anthropology….psychiatry….Who the heck is this guy?" she wondered aloud. How could someone so young manage to accomplish so much? Although she had a feeling being telepathic gave him something of an edge over normal people.
She shook her head and made her way over to his desk. Papers were scattered across the wood and her eyes couldn't help to be drawn to a certain name. Sebastian Shaw. Her eyes scanned the documents, taking in the information, though admittedly it wasn't much. Her eyes drifted around the contents before a couple of picture frames caught her eye. She picked up the first one. The faces of Charles and Raven started back at her. Raven had her arms wrapped around him, her head resting against his shoulder. They both were so happy. She set it back down in its place before picking up the other. An older couple stood with their arms around the shoulders of a young boy in between them, smiling happily at the camera. She couldn't help but notice that the woman with bobbed blonde hair and young boy had the same eyes she had come to know as Charles's and decided it must have been him with his parents. Their eyes were filled with so much love that you could feel it, even through the photograph.
Her mind drifted to thoughts of her own parents. It was hard for her to even remember what they looked like anymore and almost wished she had a picture like this to remember them by. Had they ever looked at her like that? Had they ever thought about her? Had they ever regretted leaving her in that place? Memories of her screaming for her mother not to leave her filled her mind and she was suddenly glad she didn't have a photograph of them. Perhaps some things were better off forgotten.
A voice startled her and her fingers fumbled with the frame, sending it falling to the floor. She quickly reached out with her powers and grabbed hold of the metal frame before it could make contact with the floor, however. She let out a breath of relief before she took it in her grasp and set it back in it's place. She heard the voice again and with an exasperated sigh she realized that it was not with her ears that she was hearing with. She glanced at the grandfather clock that stood by the door. 6:33. She figured people must be starting to get up and start their day. She had been thoroughly enjoying her time alone with her thoughts and her thoughts alone. She wasn't ready to be barraged with other voices just yet. She glanced out the window behind her and noticed a large tree sitting on the side of a small pond. She smiled slightly and then leaving the office behind, made her way outside.
Once she made it to the doors and quietly pulled them open a cold breeze hit her like a wall. She took a sharp intake of the crisp air before pulling her hands around her midsection and leaving the warm confines of the mansion. She let her feet carry her around the grounds until she found the pond and tree she had seen through the office window. She slid down the base of the tree, using the trunk as a back rest. She tilted her head back, closing her eyes, enjoying the sound of the birds singing around her.
Inside, the house of mutants was slowly coming to life as everyone started to begin their day. Charles, however had been awake for quite a while now. He had been awoken by the thoughts of their newest addition as she was jostled from her sleep, most likely from a nightmare. He did his best to keep his presence hidden from her as he followed her mind as she explored his home.
He did his best not to delve too deep into her thoughts as he curiously watched her, even as every once and a while she would get lost in thought as she rolled a trinket between her fingers and the desire nagged fiercely within him. But when he found her roaming through his office, he just couldn't help himself. After all, if she was going to teeter along the edges of his own privacy, perhaps him doing the same was none too different.
He now stood in the same spot she had been standing while looking over the contents of his desk, his fingers reaching out to grasp the picture of his parents the same way she had. When he had looked into her mind while she was here, he was jarred by the images that filled her mind. A small Zezelia being held back by two grown men as her mother walked away from her. The sounds of her screams echoed through his mind, startling him. His mind brushed against hers while his concentration wavered, starling her as well. He broke away from her mind then, suddenly feeling immensely guilty about intruding upon something so private.
He glanced out the window to find her in the same spot she had been in for the past hour, head laid back against his favorite tree, eyes closed peacefully. A knock on his door drew his concentration away from the window and to the door that swung open, revealing Hank's face peaking in.
"Come in Hank." He said, redepositing the photograph into it's rightful spot.
"Hey, I was just coming to let you know that I think I've worked out the bugs in Alex's suit. It should be ready for a test drive today, so to speak, if you're up for it." Hank said, standing in the doorway.
"Fantastic!" Charles said, putting his hands in his pockets. "Well done Hank, that was surprisingly fast!"
Hank's cheeks reddened at the compliment and he adjusted his glasses on his nose. "Yeah, okay. Great." He looked back up to a smiling Charles when a figure caught his eye beyond the window. He walked closer, intrigued. "Is that the new recruit? The one you went to Montreal for?"
Charles turned and looked out the window at the woman as well. "It is."
"What's her mutation?" Hank asked curiously, looking over to Charles.
"To be honest, I'm not quite sure. The majority of people she comes into physical contact with end up in excruciating pain, but the mutants she touches, she gains their powers as part of her own. She shares Erik's control over metal, she seems to have gained a rather impressive ability to heal, from even death itself, and as of yesterday she shares my mutation as well." Charles explained.
Hank stared at him, jaw dropping open. "You're kidding." He said dumbfounded. "That's….wow."
"Indeed." Charles said, turning away from the window and patting a hand on Hank's shoulder. "So, if I were you, I'd keep your hands to yourself around that one my friend."