Charlie
Disclaimer: Only Claire is mine, don't use her, and don't sue me for the others. It takes place in the CU after Mystique has blown up Muir Island and Destiny's journals have been found. Is in correlation with the time around X-men #109.
Charles Xavier rested his chin on his forefingers as he watched outside the window. His X-men, in an unusual bought of innocence and playfulness were making snowmen in the yard.
He
watched as they laughed but was saddened by the fact that he could sense the
upheaval that lay beneath the jovial surface. So much heartache had plagued them as of late, and once again their resolve
and faith had been tested to the breaking point.
Rogue
was in a more difficult position than before, and Charles was still unable to
help her. She had been a dangerous
adversary before, but now that she was manifesting the powers of those she had
come into contact with the results could be disastrous.
Young
Jubilee, the girl who had instilled so much hope in him almost had her spirit
broken, and had the scars to show for it. He knew that she would continue to put on a brave face, it was the only
way to survive; just like he knew that sooner or later she would have to come
to terms with what had happened with Bastion. Hopefully, now that Gen X was disbanded she would feel secure enough
here in her home for that to happen.
Charles
smiled as he watched the people in the yard below start a snow fight, and
chuckled as Bobby dumped a load of snow onto Gambit, causing him to fall into
an unusually graceful sprawl. However
the smile faded somewhat as he realized that the person who had grown to be
like a son to him was missing. Scott
had been gone for months now, but for many the wound was still raw. Jean was not the same, at times she appeared
almost listless, but her intent belief that Scott was still alive had kept her
going. They shared a psychic bond, so
perhaps she is right. Charles only
hoped that it did not end in more heartache.
Below,
Jean walked up to Nathan and Bishop who were busy planning a strategic attack
plan, a pile of snow balls mounting next to them with the help of Neal, one of
the newest members of the team. He
watched as she tugged on their arms, trying to get them to join the fight. It was pointless however as Logan and
Jubilee pounced from behind the snow bank pelting them with snowballs, cheering
on the top of the snow bank as they vanquished their enemies.
He
wished he could go down and join them, but he had much work to do, and it
seemed like for every minute he worked he lost two more in time he had to do
it. He ran his hand over the worn cover
of the book in his lap. For days he had
been studying these books. The diaries
of Destiny, and he had more questions than when had he started. For the tenth time that day he rubbed his
forehead in frustration, unable to decipher the woman's vague and cryptic messages
into any useful form. It seemed the
woman had purposefully written the books to be difficult. Perhaps he should ask Mystique what she had
learned, he knew that she wasn't likely to give up the information, but when
you are the most powerful telepath on the planet that is generally not a
problem. Not that it mattered, for it
seemed that she had been right, darkness lay ahead of them, and he feared it
was on the horizon.
THWACK
Charles
spun around in his chair to see Claire standing in front of his desk, one of
Destiny's books closed in her hand. He
watched her for a moment, to see if he could discern what she wanted, but as
usual he could not read her, instead he only received blankness much like the silence
on the end of a dead telephone receiver.
Claire
had recently come into their midst and had been unwillingly dragged into their
saga. The daughter Logan did not
remember, she had all of his fierce feralness, but none of his urge to control
it. Unlike Logan, she was at ease with
her violent nature, but she also had a keen perception. Charles had often wondered what was going on
behind those cold blue eyes.
"Yes
Claire?"
She
simply raised an eyebrow at him and turned toward the book in her hand.
"This
what you've been cooped up with for so long?"
"One
of many volumes, yes." He watched as she flipped through the pages, her face
remaining impassive as she viewed the hastily drawn images before her. However when she faltered at one page he knew
that it was a front, for someone who never showed any emotion but anger, that
hesitation spoke volumes.
"If
you want picture books I'm sure we can find better ones than that
Charlie." She said at last dropping it
onto the table, coming to stand by him at the window.
"Why
are you not outside with the rest of the team?" He turned to look at her.
"Not
my style, lost my ability for innocent fun a long time ago, 'sides, watching
Betsy and Neal go at it makes my stomach queasy."
Charles
suppressed a smile, "Indeed. So what shall you do in the meantime?"
"I'm
doing it."
After
a slight hesitation Charles moved out to put his hand on Claire's arm but
withdrew it when she retreated. "Some would call this a bonding moment."
"Well
it had to happen sometime, may as well be you. Why don't you come outside, get
away from this for awhile. It will do
you good to spend some time with your students. I believe they enjoy your company for some reason."
Charles
looked at the stack of journals he had yet to look through and shook his head
with a sigh, "I would like too, but I have so much to do." He said with a wave of his hand.
"I
know, but be careful, sometimes when you fight fate you play right into its
hands."
Charles
said nothing as she turned and left as silently as she came, leaving him alone
to ponder her words. It was not often
that she said anything that wasn't laced with malice, however this time he
sensed it was different. He picked up
the book she had left on his desk, this pictures meanings were still a mystery
to him. His brows drew together as he
considered the possibilities.
Could
Claire see something in the pictures that he did not? It is possible, often she saw things not only differently than
everyone else, but he suspected that she often saw things that others did
not. If this was true then she could be
more dangerous than previously suspected – after all, knowledge was power. His lips drew tight at the thought.
However
there was also the possibility that as he searched the books for the answer
that he was sealing all of their fates. After all, Destiny was a precog, it is entirely possible that she knew
that this would happen. He knew that he
was in the classic case of catch 22.
He
turned again to look out of the window and as he did Storm turned and looked
out of the window at him. Even from
this distance he could sense her unease, as her gaze met his. She was wary and on her guard, and Charles
was hit with the realization that her wariness was directed at him.
The weight of the world grew heavier on his
shoulders, not only because his students were unsure if they could trust him,
but also because he was now unsure of it himself.