aftermath

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aftermath

The day had passed. A day that Charles spent reassuring the others that he was fine. Everyone wished to make sure that he was alright, and while he appreciated the gesture? He wanted some time to himself. Losing his legs weighed heavily on him, but the other events of their mission were what troubled him.

He ran the scenario in his mind over and over again. Each time there were changed details, but ultimately Charles knew the result would be the same. Perhaps he wouldn't lose his legs, but Shaw would have died. He would of held Shaw back to keep Erik from harm, and Erik would use the chance to kill Shaw.

Charles sighed and took a drink of his Scotch as he stared at the chessboard in front of him. It helped him think. The pieces on the board could easily stand for other members of the events. Being moved around would change the scenario, but it never changed the outcome. It just made for a very ridiculous looking chessboard.

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Erik hadn't seen Charles in hours. And he still wasn't convinced things were right between them, despite Charles' reassurances. He was reassuring everyone about everything and he knew the telepath couldn't be fine with everything yet. Erik was, if nothing else, a man who knew both physical and emotional trauma extremely intimately.

Unsure if he was welcome, he poked his head in the open door of the library and spotted Charles by the chessboard. The pieces had been moved around. Was he playing alone?

"I don't suppose you want an actual opponent?"

Spoken with forced lightness, but hesitantly. Of course he didn't; if he did he would have asked.

Charles glanced up as soon as Erik had opened the door and nodded for him to enter. His eyes went back to the board with a tugged frown on his face.

It was certainly a traumatic experience. Though he did not want to make Erik feel worse than he most certainly already felt. Yes, he had helped the cause of the events, but what good would it do to insist his pain onto Erik? The man had to balance rage and serenity as it was. Pain would not help that.

"I wasn't playing." Charles informed him after a brief moment. "Thinking. The chess board didn't help as much as I had intended it to."

That wasn't, Erik noticed, a 'yes'.

He nodded, shifting his weight awkwardly. "I see." Should he leave? He should probably leave. "I'm disturbing you. I'll leave you to it."

Charles almost rolled his eyes. "Sit down, Erik."

It wasn't an invitation simply because he wasn't playing. However, he was very much aware of how the others were reacting to his own reactions. It was something he had to be more aware of.

"And make yourself a glass. You know there is always a spare."

Erik hesitated a moment, uncertain, then stepped into the room, pouring two glasses of Scotch and setting one near Charles' hand wordlessly before taking the seat he'd grown accustomed to before they left for Cuba. He glanced across at Charles, then took a sip of his drink.

He let a silence hang between them for a moment.

Then: "What do you plan as your next move, Erik?"

Shaw was dead. The original reason why they had joined forces was gone. He hoped that Erik would have enough interest in staying for the group of mutants they had assembled. They could make this a place for mutants to come and learn to control their powers. It would be hard, yes, but worth it in the end.

Or so Charles hoped.

Erik misunderstood the question, giving Charles a confused look and glancing at the game between them.

"We haven't set up the board yet."

Leaving wasn't even on his mind at the moment, though being sent away was a latent fear.

"I wasn't talking about the game."

He had no intentions of sending Erik or any of the mutants away. It was their choice to come and go. He could make them stay but he wouldn't. He never made Erik do anything. Perhaps he should of, but to him, that was the wrong way to use his powers.

They had been given extraordinary gifts but that didn't mean they had the right to abuse them.

"Oh." He swirled the amber liquid in the bottom of his glass, watching it, rather than Charles for a long moment.

"I don't know. Find a new purpose, I guess."

That, somehow, was not the answer he had expected. Erik had plans for so long that he had just assumed the man would know what to do next. Then again, the odds of surviving against Shaw had never been high.

"Might I suggest one?"

Erik shrugged a shoulder, taking a sip and looking across at Charles in invitation to do so.

"Stay here." Charles said slowly, unsure of how Erik would take the invitation. "Despite everything? The children learned to use their mutations from you as well. You could help others just as much. And, in return? You could become more powerful yourself."

"Teaching? The school is your..." He paused, watching Charles carefully. "You want my help with that?"

His eyebrows came together in confusion. Despite being able to read minds? It was absolutely stunning how people couldn't figure out his own sometimes.

"Why wouldn't I? You're my friend, Erik. We may disagree on a number of things but that does not change that we both wish to help our kind. What better way is there to teach them what we've learned here in these last few weeks?"

Erik's face hardened slightly.

"Everything we've learned?" he questioned.

He somehow doubted that Charles planned on looking more closely at the moment when both armies of humans turned their entire arsenals on the beach.

"I meant at the mansion." Charles said quickly, shaking his head. "For now we must take care of our own. Which means helping mutants understand who and what they are... and not being ashamed of that."

Humans for the moment were a battle they could not tackle. Not politically or socially. Perhaps in a few years. But, for now? No. Not with the threat of the war with the USSR always looming.

"And not allowing themselves to be destroyed," Erik pressed. "They need to know what threatens us. They need to be aware."

There was a deep inhale, then exhale at that. "Yes. They should be prepared and made aware. But, this would not be a place to train an army. Self defense is different."

"And a necessary part of their education."

He wasn't prepared to beat around the bush and pretend that they wouldn't need to learn to use their powers to protect themselves.

Charles nodded. It was necessary to their education as a mutant. There would be no disagreement from him on that front. It would of course take time and effort to build the school, but he certainly had the funds for it. That was the one benefit of being from a wealthy family.

Erik, vaguely satisfied for the moment, leaned back in his chair and regarded Charles.

"What do you want me to teach?"

Ah, now that was the question. Wasn't it?

"I thought you would prefer self defense." Charles said with an amused tone. "Unless you had something else in mind?"

Erik snorted. "And I thought you'd want me far away from anything that involved the students and violence."

A little sarcasm, but he didn't think Charles would put him in a position to speak his mind and train the students in a way that aligned with his own beliefs. He couldn't say he was interested in being Charles' puppet, but he also didn't expect anyone else to see it that way. Charles in particular.

"I can teach that. If that's what you think would be best."

He shrugged. "The methods were a bit questionable, however, you understand when a certain push is needed." Yes he hid that smirk behind his glass.

Charles was extending faith to Erik. They didn't agree on human nature, but hopefully they could put that both aside and simply focus on helping mutants learn who they were. From there the students would make their choices in the world. Neither could stop them from the choice.

"It was a suggestion. If there is something else you would rather teach, Erik, then please do speak your mind." He paused. "I shouldn't have to always need to read it."

"You know there isn't," Erik replied. He just hadn't expected it.

He was silent a moment.

"So that's what you think I should do now. Just...stay here. Teach children." He cocked his head slightly. "For how long?"

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