The Blessings of Liberty, Part 4
by heyjupiter/Renata of Doom (renata@frowl.org) 1/30/04
Summary: The fourth part of a West Wing/X-Men movieverse crossover. Senior staff talks strategy following a mutant attack on the President.
PG
TWW Season 3 & X2 spoilers
Notes: Changed this a tiny bit from the movie, just because. I mean, if I've already changed the President, surely I can change a bit more :) Charlie POV. Sorry about the long delay between chapters; I moved back into the dorms and I've been busy with moving back in and schoolwork and such.
You had been there when they came. You had just been leaving the Oval Office, had finished telling the President about some arrival or another, when they had suddenly appeared in the Oval Office, accompanied by a startling clap of thunder. They had apparently either not noticed you or not cared, and so you had heard the whole thing, standing in the corner with a look of awe on your face. You were no stranger to power-- you were, after all, assistant to the President, and you worked in the same building as the most powerful men and women in the country-- but this, this was something altogether different. These people had just materialized in one of the most heavily guarded rooms in the world. And they were telling the President that a war was coming, and that he had been betrayed by Col. Stryker, that he had arranged the attack.
A war? A war between mutants and humans? The thought made you reel. That would be... unimaginable. If just one mutant, Magneto, had been able to wreak such havok, what if every mutant in the world was fighting together against every human in the world? You shivered, although you weren't sure if it was from the thought of war or from the sudden storm, or maybe both. And now they were gone, and you, wide-eyed, looked at the President.
"Sir, are you alright?"
"I'm fine, Charlie." And he did look fine, although you were sure he had to be as shaken up as you were.
"Um. Sir, if you don't mind me asking... what do you think, about all of that?" You didn't usually ask him questions, not about policy. You didn't believe it was your place. But this was different, you two had just shared something.
He looked thoughtful. "Well, I'm certainly going to look into Col. Stryker. These documents they had..." He shook his head. "If they're even half-true, he'll be guilty of treason. And I think... maybe we're going about this the wrong way. Maybe to fight mutant terrorists, we need mutant police." He paused. "Voluntary, of course. And I think... we definitely need to take measures to prevent a war between mutants and humans. I wouldn't want to be on the losing side of that."
"Would you want to be on the winning side of that, sir?"
He smiled, sadly. "Not really, no. But I don't think a war is as imminent as they claim. Things are bad, sure, but I believe that human beings really want to do the right thing. It's just that sometimes people don't know what the right thing is. I think they want to protect their families, not realizing that they have mutants in their families, not realizing that if we take rights away from mutants, it makes the whole country less free. Of course, there's also the possibility that we're all a bunch of closed-minded bigots."
(If you were ever asked the thing that surprised you most about the President, you would reply, "His sense of humor.")
He continued. "I feel like this is society's chance to get something right... I mean, we've pretty well screwed up with all the other civil rights movements. How long did it take for women and African-Americans to get their rights fully recognized? Not to mention homosexuals. Why can't people learn from history?"
You shrugged. "Some people are still living history, Mr. President. I might not have to sit at the back of the bus anymore, but who would be more likely to get hired as a bus driver? Me or Sam?"
"I've seen the way Sam drives. No, I shouldn't joke, because you're right, Charlie." He shook his head. "How are we going to look to future generations?" At that moment, he looked so... old and helpless and hopeless that you could hardly believe he was the President, could hardly connect this shadow with the charming, strong-willed man who usually sat in that chair.
"Sir, you have an appointment with the French ambassador...," you looked at your watch, "ten minutes ago."
He looked startled, which was understandable. You, too, had almost forgotten about the rest of the day, given the extraordinary event you had just witnessed. "Yeah, send him in. And Charlie..."
"Yes, Mr. President?"
"Don't tell anyone about this thing just yet. I'm not sure..." He trailed off. "I need to think about it some more, before I decide who to tell about it, or what I'm going to do..."
"Yes, sir." You didn't envy the responsibilty he had on his shoulders, you thought, as you went to get the ambassador.
As you shut the door, you heard the President apologizing to the ambassador. You wondered what he would say if he knew the real reason for the delay. "Oh, yes Mr. Ambassador, these mutants just appeared in the Oval Office and we had a chat for awhile. They're gone now." You had a feeling that the effect would be less than endearing, and smiled as you returned to your history reading. (The President had derided your contemporary American history class, and while that wasn't the primary reason for this semester's Civil War and Reconstruction era class, it never hurt to be on your boss's good side. Especially your boss's good side.)
Now, then. You needed a topic for your term paper. The assignment was broad: relate one outcome of the Civil War to contemporary life. Flipping through your text, you frowned idly at the Fifteenth Amendment. The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude. Where, you wondered, did mutants fit into this? They were citizens, certainly, but a mutation hardly qualified them as a separate race. And while it might, occasionally, mark them a different color... interesting. You were pretty sure they were still covered under the Fourteenth Amendment: All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws, and of course the Ninth: The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.
Still, though. What amendments would a war between mutants and humans produce? Smiling to yourself, you began scribbling an outline. Maybe, for once, the world would learn from history without having it repeat itself first.
by heyjupiter/Renata of Doom (renata@frowl.org) 1/30/04
Summary: The fourth part of a West Wing/X-Men movieverse crossover. Senior staff talks strategy following a mutant attack on the President.
PG
TWW Season 3 & X2 spoilers
Notes: Changed this a tiny bit from the movie, just because. I mean, if I've already changed the President, surely I can change a bit more :) Charlie POV. Sorry about the long delay between chapters; I moved back into the dorms and I've been busy with moving back in and schoolwork and such.
You had been there when they came. You had just been leaving the Oval Office, had finished telling the President about some arrival or another, when they had suddenly appeared in the Oval Office, accompanied by a startling clap of thunder. They had apparently either not noticed you or not cared, and so you had heard the whole thing, standing in the corner with a look of awe on your face. You were no stranger to power-- you were, after all, assistant to the President, and you worked in the same building as the most powerful men and women in the country-- but this, this was something altogether different. These people had just materialized in one of the most heavily guarded rooms in the world. And they were telling the President that a war was coming, and that he had been betrayed by Col. Stryker, that he had arranged the attack.
A war? A war between mutants and humans? The thought made you reel. That would be... unimaginable. If just one mutant, Magneto, had been able to wreak such havok, what if every mutant in the world was fighting together against every human in the world? You shivered, although you weren't sure if it was from the thought of war or from the sudden storm, or maybe both. And now they were gone, and you, wide-eyed, looked at the President.
"Sir, are you alright?"
"I'm fine, Charlie." And he did look fine, although you were sure he had to be as shaken up as you were.
"Um. Sir, if you don't mind me asking... what do you think, about all of that?" You didn't usually ask him questions, not about policy. You didn't believe it was your place. But this was different, you two had just shared something.
He looked thoughtful. "Well, I'm certainly going to look into Col. Stryker. These documents they had..." He shook his head. "If they're even half-true, he'll be guilty of treason. And I think... maybe we're going about this the wrong way. Maybe to fight mutant terrorists, we need mutant police." He paused. "Voluntary, of course. And I think... we definitely need to take measures to prevent a war between mutants and humans. I wouldn't want to be on the losing side of that."
"Would you want to be on the winning side of that, sir?"
He smiled, sadly. "Not really, no. But I don't think a war is as imminent as they claim. Things are bad, sure, but I believe that human beings really want to do the right thing. It's just that sometimes people don't know what the right thing is. I think they want to protect their families, not realizing that they have mutants in their families, not realizing that if we take rights away from mutants, it makes the whole country less free. Of course, there's also the possibility that we're all a bunch of closed-minded bigots."
(If you were ever asked the thing that surprised you most about the President, you would reply, "His sense of humor.")
He continued. "I feel like this is society's chance to get something right... I mean, we've pretty well screwed up with all the other civil rights movements. How long did it take for women and African-Americans to get their rights fully recognized? Not to mention homosexuals. Why can't people learn from history?"
You shrugged. "Some people are still living history, Mr. President. I might not have to sit at the back of the bus anymore, but who would be more likely to get hired as a bus driver? Me or Sam?"
"I've seen the way Sam drives. No, I shouldn't joke, because you're right, Charlie." He shook his head. "How are we going to look to future generations?" At that moment, he looked so... old and helpless and hopeless that you could hardly believe he was the President, could hardly connect this shadow with the charming, strong-willed man who usually sat in that chair.
"Sir, you have an appointment with the French ambassador...," you looked at your watch, "ten minutes ago."
He looked startled, which was understandable. You, too, had almost forgotten about the rest of the day, given the extraordinary event you had just witnessed. "Yeah, send him in. And Charlie..."
"Yes, Mr. President?"
"Don't tell anyone about this thing just yet. I'm not sure..." He trailed off. "I need to think about it some more, before I decide who to tell about it, or what I'm going to do..."
"Yes, sir." You didn't envy the responsibilty he had on his shoulders, you thought, as you went to get the ambassador.
As you shut the door, you heard the President apologizing to the ambassador. You wondered what he would say if he knew the real reason for the delay. "Oh, yes Mr. Ambassador, these mutants just appeared in the Oval Office and we had a chat for awhile. They're gone now." You had a feeling that the effect would be less than endearing, and smiled as you returned to your history reading. (The President had derided your contemporary American history class, and while that wasn't the primary reason for this semester's Civil War and Reconstruction era class, it never hurt to be on your boss's good side. Especially your boss's good side.)
Now, then. You needed a topic for your term paper. The assignment was broad: relate one outcome of the Civil War to contemporary life. Flipping through your text, you frowned idly at the Fifteenth Amendment. The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude. Where, you wondered, did mutants fit into this? They were citizens, certainly, but a mutation hardly qualified them as a separate race. And while it might, occasionally, mark them a different color... interesting. You were pretty sure they were still covered under the Fourteenth Amendment: All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws, and of course the Ninth: The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.
Still, though. What amendments would a war between mutants and humans produce? Smiling to yourself, you began scribbling an outline. Maybe, for once, the world would learn from history without having it repeat itself first.