Xavier's ex-School for gifted youngsters - Westchester, New York – 1973
Charles and Blair make their way to Cerebro, Hank and Logan were already down there
"When was the last time you were down here?" Logan asked
"The last time we went looking for students" Hank answered, Charles intercepted before he could continue
"A lifetime ago"
That shut them up awkwardly. Blair bit her lip as Charles's eyes get scanned at the doorway
"Welcome, Professor" The computerized machine answered and the doors opens and they enter inside making their way towards Cerebro, Hank turns on the equipment
"Raven's wounded, she won't be moving fast"
Charles picks up the Cerebro and blows off the dust off of it
"These are muscles I haven't stretched in a long time" he puts the helmet on his head and instantly sees and hears the call of other mutants which overwhelms him "God!"
The frantic call of the mutants start to really overwhelm Charles and he loses focus
"Charles!" both Logan and Blair shout worriedly
Suddenly not being able to handle it, Charles causes the Cerebro equipment to break down. Charles takes the helmet off his head
Hank runs forward worriedly "Charles! Charles, it's alright. I'll go check the generator" he turns and leaves
Logan and Blair exchanged a look and then looked at Charles knowingly
"It's not the machinery, is it?" Logan asked. Charles sighed shakily
"I can't do this, my mind..."
Blair flinched, her eyes widening clouding for a second before shaking her head "Yes, you can" she told him determinedly.
"It won't take it" Charles told them ignoring Blair's supporting wordds. Logan hesitated shrugging
"You're just a little rusty" He said, Blair nodded hesitantly in agreement. Charles shook his head again
"You don't understand, it's not a question of being rusty. I can flip the switches, I can turn the knobs, but my power comes from here, it comes from... " he touches his head and goes to point to his heart "And it's broken. I felt like one of my students, helpless. It was a mistake coming down here. It was a mistake freeing Erik. This whole thing has been one bloody mistake! "Charles turns his chair and starts to leave "I'm sorry, Logan, but they sent back the wrong man"
"You're right. I am" Logan sighed confessing. Blair looked at him and Charles stopped by the door
Logan walks towards him
"Actually it was supposed to be you. But I was the only one who could physically make the trip. And uh...I don't know how long I've got here, but I do know that a long time...actually, a long time from now, I was your most helpless student, and you unlocked my mind. You showed me what I was, you showed me what I could be. I don't know how to do that for you. You're right, I don't. But I know someone who might" Charles looked confused "Look into my mind"
Blair raised her eyebrows incredulously looking between them and Cerebro
"You saw what I did to Cerebro. You don't want me inside your head" He told him voicing Blair's thoughts out loud. Logan closed his eyes.
"There's no damage you can do that hasn't already been done, trust me"
Charles hesitatingly touches his fingers to Logan's head and enters his mind, he sees Logan's memories of Stryker experimenting on him, meeting a redhead woman, Jean Grey, falling in love with her and then having to kill her
"You, poor, poor, man" Charles murmured. Blair curiously walked to them
"Look past me" Logan commanded him. Charles shook his head
"No, I don't want your suffering, I don't want your future!" he shouted startling Blair, who unconsciously touched her wrist watch
"Look past my future, look for your future" Charles starts to focus again. "That's it. That's it. That's it"
Blair looked between them almost being thrown into the future but she didn't want to. She forced herself to stay in the present tightening her grip on her watch, focusing on the now and not where Charles and Logan were seeing the future.
She felt herself gain control, her eyes returning to focus. She blinked a couple of times seeing Charles' concentrated and dazed off and wondered if that's how she looked like when she was having a premonition.
~8~
Future
Blair flinches sensing a presence not belonging to their time. She closed her eyes concentrating to see pass her present to recognize the presence. She opened her eyes, the scenery changing before her eyes, her mutants friends looking frozen.
Frowning, she looked around searching for the extra presence. Her eyes widening slightly seeing a man lying down where Logan was supposed to be. His eyes familiar to Blair. She gasped returning back to her present.
She closed her eyes shaking slightly her head and looked down at her professor. He, sensing her gaze looked up. She touched his shoulder letting him borrow her ability for a while. She whispered at him
"You're here"
Professor X nodded unsurprised now sensing his younger self. He concentrated closing his eyes using Blair's precognition powers. "Charles?"
His younger self looked surprised into seeing himself "Charles?"
The Professor, now knowing the women's powers were working, opened his eyes and looked straight at his younger self
Charles looks around at the future "So this is what becomes of us? Erik was right. Humanity does this to us"
"Not if we show them a better path"
Charles looked at himself incredulously "You still believe?"
"Just because someone stumbles, loses their way, it doesn't mean they're lost forever. Sometimes we all need a little help"
Charles raised his eyebrows bitterly "Oh, I'm not the man I was. I open my mind and it almost overwhelms me"
"You're afraid, and Cerebro knows it" The Professor stated
"All those voices, so much pain" Charles told him painfully
"It's not their pain you're afraid of, it's yours, Charles. And as frightening as it may be, that pain will make you stronger. If you allow yourself to feel it, embrace it, it will make you more powerful than you ever imagined. It's the greatest gift we have, to bear their pain without breaking, and it's born from the most human power: Hope" The professor using Blair's power, shows him a vision of his young mutant students at X-Mansion "Please. Charles, we need you to hope again"
At that moment, Blair and The professor feels his younger self leaving their present.
Bobby tends to Kitty's wound as Blair and the Professor regain the energy used from seeing young Charles
"She's lost too much blood. She can't keep going like this" Bobby looks up from Kitty to the others worriedly
"We have no choice, Bobby" Erik told him. Bobby frowned looking at Kitty worriedly
"We can wake him up"
Blair shakes her head, glancing at the professor as he spoke
"No! They need more time. I had a glimpse into the past. If we wake Logan now, we may set off an even darker course. They need more time"
Blair nodded playing with her old looking not functioning wrist watch.
~8~
Blair watches Charles blink as his vision focused again on the present. Logan noticing too gave him a reassuring look
"Find what you were looking for?"
Just then the power comes back on and Hank walks over to them "Power's back on" he informed them
Charles looked between the other three mutants in a second of silence before nodding once answering both males.
"Yes. Yes, it is"
Blair smiled knowingly as she knew the outcome of the moment. Charles glanced at her with an amused smile