Lilia sat still, her legs curled against her chest and her eyes watching the flames. Charles and Erik sat at a chessboard, playing in silence the one game Erik had a chance of beating Charles at.
"Cuba." Lilia didn't move as Charles spoke. "Russia. America. What's the difference? Shaw's declared war on mankind; on all of us. He has to be stopped."
"I'm not going to stop Shaw." Erik's words made Lilia tense. "I'm going to kill him." She smiled. Erik wasn't backing down. She was not going to be alone in her wish of death for that man. "Do you have it in you to allow that?" She could faintly hear him moving a chess piece. There was a long pause before Erik spoke again. "You've known all along why I'm here Charles. But things have changed. What started as a covert mission, tomorrow mankind will know that mutants exist. Shaw. Us. They won't differentiate. They'll fear us. And that fear will turn into hatred."
"Not if we stop a war. Not if we prevent Shaw. Not if we risk our lives doing so."
"Would they do the same for us?"
"We have it in us to be the better men."
"We already are." There was tension building, Lilia could sense it. Anger flowing between the two men, fueled by a disagreement. "We're the next stage of human evolution. You said it yourself!" Charles tried to interrupt. "Are you really so naïve as to think they won't battle to their own extinction? Or is it arrogance."
"I'm sorry." Charles sounded offended.
"After tomorrow they're going to turn on us and you'll be blinded because you believe they're all like Moria."
"And you believe they're all like Shaw."
Lilia didn't know what she believed. She knew humans could be kind; Moria and the woman who had cared for her were evidence of that. But she knew they could be like Shaw as well. Everyone could.
"Listen to me very carefully my friend. Killing Shaw will not bring you peace."
"Peace was never an option."
The room became silent once more for a few minutes before Lilia heard Charles stand and sit on the chair behind her. Erik didn't move.
"Lilia, I want you to listen carefully. Do you truly believe killing Shaw will help you at all?"
Lilia let her legs slide so down so that they were stretched in front of her and she leaned back on her arms. She didn't take her eyes off the fire. "Shaw peeled the skin off my back. He stabbed me with knifes. He dug me with more needles filled with drugs than I could count. He locked me in a cage and never feed me. He tortured me. Only to get me to use my mutation. And I didn't. So he did even more. He destroyed me." She slowly turned her head so that her eyes met Charles. "All I want is to destroy him."
Charles moved so that he was crouched next to her, gently taking her hands in his. She turned so that she was facing him, her legs curled by her side. "Killing him won't make the pain go away."
Her eyes watered. "I know. All I want is for him to be punished for what he did."
"Please remember you should be the better man." Out of the corner of her eye she could see Erik watching them. He looked tense, almost as though he was about to leap and protect her.
"I know I should be the better man. I know I shouldn't want to kill him. I know I should forgive him and forget. But you try being the better man when someone peeled the skin off your back. You try to not want to kill someone when they filled you with drugs. You try to forgive and forget someone when they locked you in a cage and made you torture an innocent man!" She was shaking. Charles could feel it in her hands.
"I think you should leave her alone." Erik's voice was tense. Charles glanced back, seeing Erik's narrow eyes and his clenched fists. He dropped her hands, but he did not move. Their eyes held each other for a moment. Her voice drifted into his head.
I know you think it is wrong, but Shaw is paying for what he did. You are not going to stop me.
Charles nodded faintly and stood. He sat back at the chess table.
"I'm going to go get ready for bed now. I'll be waiting for you Erik." She only nodded goodbye at Erik, ignoring Charles as she drifted past him. The two men watched as the door slammed closed behind her. Ever since the walk around the lake, Lilia had moved into Erik's room.
"Why did you do that?" Charles slowly turned his head to face Erik, who had his fists clenched. "You took advantage of how uncertain she was. You tried to use her."
Charles could only stare at the chess board. "I did not try to use her Erik. I tried to help her figure out exactly what she wanted to do."
"By suggesting what you wanted to do. I expected better of you Charles. Trying to manipulate an innocent woman."
"Says the man who has her sleeping in his bed."
Lilia ran her fingers through her hair, frowning as she stared into the mirror. It was clear she was worn down, tired. There were bags under her eyes that didn't used to be. The veins on her arms stood out more than ever, burning blue and red with stress. She leaned over with her hands clutching the edge of the sink. For a moment she took the pain of her back into her once again.
It pulsed through her body. Her body caved into an arch. The pain was too much. It seemed to be trying to burst through the skin on her back. She saw darkness and it took all her strength to send the pain back to the murderers and rapists who lived with their sections of the pain. She took a deep breath. There was always a weight on her when she took the pain away. The constant reminder she could only feel for a few seconds after having the pain.
Lilia splashed her face with water before pulling open the door. But she was forced to stop. Erik was sitting on the bed, with Raven in her true form. And they were kissing. She took a step back in surprise. Rage burned up inside of her and she shot pain towards Raven. The woman fell away from Erik, who turned to Lilia.
"I expected more of you Raven." She held her head high. Even then, her voice was shaking. "Go. I would like to speak to Erik alone." Raven did not object, instead slipping out as quickly as she could.
They looked at each other until the door closed. "Why did you use your mutation on her?" he spoke calmly.
Lilia gave him the same respect, as much as it pained her. She had to blink to keep tears from falling. "Why were you kissing her?" Erik opened his mouth but closed it just as quickly. "I thought you were better than kissing another woman just because she lay in your bed naked!" She collapsed in a chair by the fire, resting her head on her arm while she rested it on the chair. "I'll still help you kill Shaw, but that's it, if that's what you want. I'll leave." She knew it was time. How could anyone stay with her for long, knowing what she could do? It seemed impossible to her that someone had stayed as long as Erik had.
Erik came over and sat across from her. He leaned forward and took her hands gently. Even though she tried to look away, his eyes held hers. "It meant nothing, Lilia. I was simply convincing her she was beautiful the way she was born. The kiss was the only thing I could think of to tell her that in a way she would believe."
She tried to yank her hands away, but he was stronger. There were tears in her eyes. "It meant nothing?"
He nodded. "It meant nothing." Lilia raised her hands so they rested on either side of his face. She pulled him to her and they kissed. It was filled with more passion then the one between Raven and Erik, this one shared between two people who clearly loved each other. The two hadn't kissed often and any time they did, it was Lilia who started it. She had made Erik promise that.
Lilia pushed Erik into his chair, her hands running through his hair while his hands clutched her hips. They kissed for longer than either of them bothered to count before Erik stood with her legs wrapped around him and carried her to the bed. She was as light as she always had been. He unwound her from him and kissed her forehead. As he drew away her eyes followed him sadly. "I must get prepared for bed."
She smiled and curled up under the blanket, resting her head on an upturned arm. He disappeared into the bathroom, only to return a minute later in his pajamas. He pulled the light off before slipping into the bed beside her, kissing her head again before pulling her against him. They fell asleep intertwined.
The red smoke that announced Azazel's arrival went unnoticed by Erik and Lilia. It almost made Azazel feel sad to unlock the two from each other. As he pulled her away from him, their fingers caught, their bodies making one last attempt to remain together. When they were finally separated, Azazel took her hand and vanished once again. Erik simply rolled over.
Lilia awoke when they reappeared, her eyes blinking away the red from the travel. The white of the ceiling faded into view. Her eyes snapped to the first face she saw and her body fell apart.
"Hello Lilia. Did you miss me?" Shaw grinned down at her, his hands crossed behind his back.
"No." Lilia tried to push herself up but Riptide and Azazel kept her down. "No. Please no."
Shaw laughed before stepping away. "Chain her."
The two men began to drag her into the mirrored room, with Shaw following slightly behind. She kept her eyes on his, not fighting as they shoved her into the small indent in the wall. Her arms were yanked above her head and chains snapped on them. Azazel and Riptide immediately cringed. The pain had been sent towards them.
Shaw smiled, kneeling in front of her. "Now, that wasn't very nice. They didn't do anything to you. Apologize." She shook her head and he sighed. "Well, at least I know you've learned how to control your mutation." He cuffed his finger against her cheek. "Now, I'm going to tell you what is going to happen to you.
"Tomorrow is the day the missiles from the Soviet Union cross the line and America announces nuclear war. Right now, we are right in the center of it. And we are going to stay here and watch the countries burn. Meanwhile, you are going to stay right here, chained against this wall. No way for you to escape. Not even Erik could save you now."
Shaw stepped away. "Now, I'm going to leave my men to injure you so that you can't move a muscle. I would give you more of that poison I gave you when you were younger, since that worked wonderfully to get you to use your mutation. But any more poison and you'd die. And I don't want to kill you." He smiled even wider and disappeared from her view. There was a moment of stillness before Azazel and Riptide approached from the side, menacing grins on their faces. Lilia shrunk away, closing her eyes as the first knife dug into her leg.
A/N: It's been a while since I've updated this and I'm sorry. It was namely because I didn't know if I wanted a chapter between this one and the last. I decided against it. I hope you enjoyed this chapter and I thank each and every one of you for every review I get. It truly makes my day.