Mystique is observing the pharmacists carefully from outside. Her plan is to get the ingredients Hank needs for his anaesthetic as easy as possible so she has to steal them in her way. Surprisingly, Hank did not protest and lets her do it without even commenting. Charles would have acted differently so they are not so alike like she thought.
As one leaves the pharmacy for a smoking break, she strikes. She shifts into the form of an elderly woman and asks him for help because her 'grandchild' is lying injured in an alley nearby. The pharmacist follows her straight to the dark alley. He's confused as he notices that there's no injured grandchild but before he can complain about it Mystique knocks him out with a hard kick on his head. He falls down unconscious and Mystique's skin shifts into a perfect copy of him. Armed with the pharmacist's keys, she returns to the pharmacy and enters it. It doesn't take her long to find the cupboards with all the strong muscle relaxants and painkillers which Hank might need. She takes as many as she can hold and leaves the pharmacy as fast as she entered without the other pharmacist even noticing. It's a small triumph.
A few houses away, Hank is waiting for her nervously. Mystique notices that he is not quite comfortable with this situation but he seems content as she reappears in her standard blonde form with all the tablets in her hands. He lets the medicine disappear fast in his jacket and both leave for their hotel in silence again, trying to act as innocent as possible.
Back at the hotel, Hank exhales deeply. "You were magnificent, Mystique. Thank you." He sends her a smile which she returns. "Thanks. That's my job." Mystique changes her appearance to her normal form and sits down on her bed, crossing her legs. Hank places the tablets on the table and examines them. He seems to have found what he needs.
"Hank? Who taught you how to mix anaesthetics from normal painkillers?" Mystique asks while watching Hank reading the papers. "I'm a Chemistry enthusiast, you know. And I also know the human body, so I know how to knock people out. No big deal." Mystique giggles at his exclaim. Something deep inside her wants to find out how well he really knows the human body but she abolishes this thought as fast as she can because it feels wrong. Why is she wondering about such things anyway? The one thing she has in mind at the moment will and should never happen. But maybe it's worth a try.
Mystique stands up, willing to come closer, but something is stopping her from coming closer. It is the feeling that it would be an odd waste of time. They are not so close anymore as like they used to be so she suggests something else. "I'm kinda hungry. Shall we grab something to eat or are you still busy?" Hank nods, still reading. "I...I can go on later. So... let's go." Mystique smiles and takes his hand in hers. Shifting into her blonde form in a long black dress, she guides him out, not letting go of his hand.
In a café nearby, Mystique and Hank take a seat and order some typical French crêpes. "You need to tell me who taught you how to speak French like that. It's perfect!" Mystique throws in to break the ice. She always knew that Hank is a genius but she never thought that he is also multilingual. The more time she spends with him, the more she seems to learn about him and she likes it. But the fact that he can speak French is nothing against the fact that Hank has the same goal like her, catching Magneto. Who would have guessed that? Mystique started liking the idea of having someone as back-up and her feelings tell her that Hank will be a good partner in that case. She can trust him but some casual small talk to get to know him better can be nice, too.
"I learned it at my time in Harvard. Nothing special, really. And who taught you French?"
Mystique shrugs a little and her gaze leaves his face. "Erik. He basically taught me everything he knows... the same goes for the others of our Brotherhood. They taught me as well."
"Oh. What happened to them by the way?" he says in a lower tone.
Mystique takes a deep breath. It's still hard to talk about their fates. "They were killed by Trask. All of them. Except for me and Erik."
Hank seems to be touched. "I'm sorry, Mystique. We lost Sean, too."
"I know." she whispers and touches his hand. They exchange a quick glance but look quickly out of the window, observing the street outside.
The lights of Paris become more visible with the disappearing sun and they are beautiful. Paris is definitely magic and has an undeniable character. You can even see the famous shimmering Eiffel Tower from here which slowly starts to light up. Mystique kind of regrets that she is not here for vacation and relaxing but for business. She'd love to spend a vacation here after all the Magneto trouble is solved, maybe even with Hank. It turned out that he's a good companion and she can tell that he thinks the same about her. Her gaze wanders back to Hank's face which is still directed at the street outside the window. She studies it carefully and entwines her fingers in his what makes him blush again.
Something inside tells her that she should come closer to him. Can her old feelings for him be alive again? It's true that since the last time she saw him, her thoughts have wandered to him a few times, especially when she felt alone. But is she in love with him again? Most likely not. She just missed him. That's all. He was one of her closest friends after all, and even more than that for quite some time.
A waitress bringing them their order, interrupts her thoughts. She lets go of his hand and starts to eat. It's distracting her a little from starring at Hank but it's still not enough; he's caught all of her attention all of a sudden.
There's also something else bothering her; Is he attracted to her as well? She cannot tell and does not really know why she feels the sudden urge to be with Hank so bad, again. Hank has never told her anything about his feelings for her but she knew that he liked her a lot from his behaviour. Charles also said that he had a soft spot for her. So, you can say that the only things stopping them from starting a romantic relationship were their shyness and the bad circumstances. There were so many times Mystique has been imagining the scenario in which they'd be together now. It would be interesting to find out what Hank thinks about this.
While they're still enjoying their crêpes in silence, Mystique wants to know. "Do you remember the time we spent together in our youth days fumbling with our appearance? We were so silly back then." Hank looks at her and copies her smile. "Especially you. You were so cute." she adds in a low and slightly seductive voice and takes his hand in hers again. "I had such a huge crush on you back then." Hank almost chokes at her late confession. "Really?" he asks with a shaking voice. Mystique nods slowly. "I loved spending time with you and staring at your beautiful face." She giggles and leans closer to him, admiring his deep blue eyes. Maybe, she can satisfy her curiousity tonight.
He tries to avoid her gaze but doesn't let go of her hand. His expression changed from happy to deeply worried and confused. "What? It's not like you didn't know it. Everybody knew about...well... us." Hank looks like he's going to faint every second. "Us?" he wonders. Mystique only nods in response. She lets go of his hand to continue eating but Hank is still in shock. Hank has always adored Shakespear's sonnets about love but being confronted with this feeling in real life throws him out of its routine of logic by a simple confession of romantic admiration. This character trait has never vanished as it seems and it's absolutely heart-melting.
Suddenly, she notices that his eyes have changed from dark blue to yellow. "Are you ok?" she asks him but he doesn't react. He's taking deep breaths and mumbling something, most likely trying to prevent his beastly side from coming to the surface. It's surprising to see that she has such an effect on him but it's also a little terrifying, too. His skin changing is a fascinating process but she can see how much he is suffering, so she takes his hand and pulls him out of the café fast, without paying or even finishing. Hand in hand, they run towards their hotel which is just five minutes away.
Finally in their room, Hank collapses to the floor and fully releases his real face growling, the Beast. He does not seem to be happy about it, he's rather desperate and rushing to find his serum. Mystique cannot stress enough how much she'd prefer him not to hide his actually beautiful furry appearance. He's so unique but he wants to hide it. Such a pity. Before he can inject himself, Mystique takes the syringe out of his shaking hands whispering, "You don't need to hide when you're around me, Hank. You're perfect, remember? Don't hide your perfection." She wraps her arms around his waist to comfort him. "I need it, Mystique. If we want this operation here to be successful I need to hide." She can understand his concern somehow. "But you don't need to hide when you're around me." Hank tries to get his syringe back but Mystique is faster. "You know what? I allow you to stay in your human appearance if you promise me to never use your serum again after we caught Erik."
"Never again?"
"No, never. Only if you want to demonstrate your students your chemistry skills. So... do you promise me that?" She gives him a hopeful look.
"Mystique, I..." Before he can continue, she puts a finger on his lips to silence him.
"Hank, please! For your fellow mutants! Think about your new students back at the school. Your task is to be their idol and to teach them how to deal with their mutation. How are they gonna learn that if their teacher is always hiding a part of his mutation? If you're proud, they will be proud, too." Hank breaks her embrace and sits down on his bed, his head resting in his palms. Mystique sits down next to him and puts an arm around his shoulders. "So... will you do me the favour?" she pleads him once again in a softer voice, hoping that he will give in. Seeing him so desperate breaks her heart. If there was just something to confront him.
"I promise.", he finally says and looks at her with a still sad face.
His face is beautiful, no matter if it's human or beastly. Mystique adores it in every version because it's Hank's and he's perfect. She could stare at him for the rest of the day but there's another need bothering her. Almost blind, she closes the space between their faces and kisses him tenderly on his lips.
Finally, there it is.