"This is so weird."

Charles raised a brow and quipped, "Aptly put."

Perched on the foot of his bed, Raven tugged the hem of her borrowed nightshirt down over her knees. When she slept, she reverted to her natural blue form, meaning he clothes vanished and, though the mansion was familiar, it was strange and she didn't want to be alone in her room. Sean had been understanding and lent her a t-shirt to sleep in. "I'm no mind reader, but it was pretty clear what some of those girls were thinking about you and Erik."

"Raven!" Charles mumbled as he contemplated the chess set that sat where it had since he was a boy. She smiled as his cheeks pinked. He was delightfully easy to ruffle. She assumed he'd attempt to dissuade her, but instead he continued, "Not a small number of young men were quite take with you."

She laughed and tossed a pillow at him, which h batted away with a smile.

Glancing at the door, he called out, "Come in, Erik."

The door lock clicked open and Erik slipped in, silent on bare feet. As he stepped further into the room, the door swung closed and the lock re-engaged, courtesy of his powers. He looked more disgruntled than usual and Raven asked, "What else exploded?"

Charles choked on a snort as Erik grimaced. "The clock on the bedside table died the moment I touched it."

21st century technology did not seem to interact well with Erik Lehnsherr. Raven found that highly amusing. So far, TV and game thing in the rec room, several impossibly tiny phones, a smoke alarm and now a clock had fallen prey to his magnetic abilities.

He peered around Charles's room, looking for any more potential microchip filled time bombs. Not seeing any immediately evident, he relaxed…well, as much as Erik ever relaxed. Raven doubted he even really unwound, though he did seem to find Charles's presence soothing. Sometimes she felt a stab of jealousy at the easy rapport the two of them had developed, but she could see that they each filled a void in the other's life.

But more than anything, she was glad to see Charles happy.

Of course, this whole time travel (or whatever had happened) thing had thrown them all for a loop, but Charles seemed far more curious than confused or on edge. The residents of the mansion (the ones from the future…or the present, she supposed) were all a bit blasé about the whole situation. The adults seemed more concerned with the fact that (according to them), she and Erik were bad guys and the kids…the girls were happy to ogle Charles and Erik, while the boys had been looking her over.

Well, not the girl with the white streak in her hair. That girl was definitely hostile.

"If we're here for an extended amount of time, I'm sure you'll master the delicate hand needed so as not to effect their technologies," Charles said supportively. "From what I overheard from the teachers, by their time you don't have issues with accidental destruction of tech."

"Good to know," Erik muttered, settling gracefully on the left side of the bed. The movement caused his robe to gape open slightly, revealing the broad, smooth expanse of his chest. Unlike Charles, who wore blue linen pajamas, the same style as the ones he'd been wearing the night he'd found her in the kitchen, Erik was clad only in soft, cotton pants and a warm blue robe.

He leaned back against the pile of pillows and let out a tired breath. Raven had to agree with his tacit admittance of exhaustion. The shock of the day had taken a lot out of her and even Charles, for all his enthusiasm, had been letting loosed a series of jaw cracking yawns.

"You gonna stay with us tonight?" She asked Erik, who blinked at her in surprise before glancing at Charles, who was now peering at the shelves of books in the sitting area. He wasn't paying any attention, so Raven continued, "I know it's silly, but I don't want to be alone here tonight. This is home, but it's not and…."

With a nod, Erik said, "I see."

"There's plenty of room," Charles said easily, selecting a book and crossing to them. The bed was an enormous, tall structure and Raven smiled as he boosted himself up onto his usual side. There was literally several feet between the two men and she grinned, crawling up the bed and settling into the free space.

Between the late hour and the stresses of the day, she found her eyelids drooping as she snuggled under the blankets. Beside her, Erik did the same, shedding his robe and switching off the light on his bedside table. Charles attempted to read for a few minutes, but soon gave in and set the book down.

The room plunged into darkness and Raven fell to sleep listening to the men on either side of her breathe.

The sun streaming in through the windows slowly woke her and Raven stretched, enjoying the lingering moments of peace that existed before true awareness rushed in. As she remembered the events of the previous day, she sighed and opened her eyes, glancing around Charles's room.

How the….?

Somehow, during the night, she and Charles had traded positions in bed. She was sprawled, comfortably boneless, on the right side, where Charles had been when they'd drifted off. Now, he was in the middle, but she had certainly not been in his current position last night.

In sleep, Charles had become the little spoon to Erik's big spoon. It was actually quite adorable.

Snuggled in Erik's arms, Charles was sleeping deeply, his breaths even and cheeks flushed from the body heat the larger man was providing. Beyond Charles's dark, tousled hair, Erik's face looked more peaceful than she'd had ever seen. He was holding Charles as though determined to never let him go.

Despite (or maybe because of) what the 21st century inhabitants of the mansion had told them about the complicated relationship between the older versions of Charles and Erik, she couldn't imagine either of them allowing such a rift to occur. Though they hadn't known each other for very long, Raven could see that they had simply clicked from the moment they met. They understood each other, respected each other as equals, found comfort together.

That much was evident in Erik's relaxed expression and the fact that Charles was still sleeping. Normally, he had trouble blocking out the minds of large groups of people while he was asleep and they woke him, which was never fun. Charles was not a morning person. Clearly, his mind had reached out and, feeling Erik's familiar presence, had latched onto him in order to block out the chaos of the school.

Grinning, Raven wished she had a camera to capture the two of them like this.

She shifted slightly as her waking muscles protested her inactivity and cried out to stretch. The motion, tiny as it was, woke Erik in an instant and his blue eyes flew open, peering at her over the top of Charles's head. For a moment, he gazed at her, unblinking, before his eyes ticked down to Charles, then back to her, lifting a brow as though daring her to comment.

Stifling a chuckle, Raven merely grinned.

It was in that moment that Charles showed a sign of life, moaning, "Fi mrr mints." He then rolled over, pressing his face to Erik's chest and went back to sleep.

The expression on Erik's face was one of mixed surprise, amusement and pleasure and he raised a hand to gently stoke Charles's hair.

For a moment, Raven could almost forget about all this future craziness as she watched the two of them indulgently.

Then the sound of a distant explosion echoed faintly through the room and they all shot out of bed, fighting with the sheets that ensnared them. Explosions had actually become fairly commonplace of late, between Alex, Hank and Sean, but they were always worth investigating.

Nothing to worry about. Jean Grey's voice echoed in their heads before they even reached the door. Minor accident in the chemistry lab.

Charles looked around in bewilderment, blinking sleepily as he replied, Thank you, Ms. Grey. Good morning.

Morning. I have to deal with the lab, but breakfast is being served until 10.

Standing there beside Erik, who looked coiled and tense as usual, and Charles, rumpled and sleepy, looking like the little boy she'd met so many years ago, Raven shrugged and said, "I could eat."

Might as well see what would happen today.

TBC…..

Sorry for the long gap between posts of this fic, but I've been busy with work and family.

Comments, pretty please?