All I can say is wow! So many of you continue to favorite and follow my story, Trial and Error, even though it has come to an end! Thank you all so much! I have been wanting to do a one shot for my story ever since it ended but never had the time or couldn't figure out a place to fit it in. But alas, I found a spot and I think its just perfect and I hope that all of you enjoy it! I cannot wait for X-Men: Apocolypse to come out in May! I may write another fanfic after it comes out but I cant make any promises! So, Please read and enjoy this one-shot. I was so happy I could write this up.

Much, much love,

Dakota Lyon

This one-shot takes place during chapter 9, just after Erik visits Harper's room to tell her Charles agreed to her plan about going to the 'mutant party.' The part where Erik tells Harper ""I seriously hope that you consider not going." and before she "wakes up the next morning"

Harper absolutely could not sleep after what had just occurred between her and Erik. Okay, so he cared what happened to her if she went to the party, swarmed by dangerous mutants. But why? He makes his hatred towards humans obvious, even though he has been decent towards her and hasn't tried to kill her. But the way he placed his hand on her neck… the stroke of his thumb against her skin…

"Ugh!" Harper exclaimed, slamming her suitcase lid shut. She zippered it up hastily and carried it over to the door, throwing it down. She turned around and looked out her window. The night sky was brightened by the moon and the stars were brilliant against the endless black space. She walked over to the window and gazed up at the night sky. The moon was almost full and she mapped out a few constellations in her head. The sky looked so peaceful. That's what she needed. Peace.

Harper went to her closet and pulled on a black sweatshirt and a pair of grey leggings. She stripped off her cardigan and short from the day and then pulled the sweatshirt over her head, then slipped on the comfy pair of leggings. She reached up to the top shelf in her closet and pulled down a soft, knitted quilt. She didn't bother to put on shoes when she left her room. She quietly crept through the hallways of the mansion and down the stairs. She went to one of the back doors which led out to the vast yard that beheld the large, beautiful fountain. She quietly closed the door behind her and took a deep breath of the night air. It was still warm out with a comfortable, light breeze. She listened to the sound of the fountain's water for a little before heading down the marble steps. The grass was soft against her bare feet and barely made any noise as she headed out into the yard. She stopped and looked up at the sky. Smiling, she decided this was the perfect place to watch the night above.

She splayed the quilt out on the grass and then lay down on her back, tucking an arm behind her head as she gazed above. With her eyes, she scanned the bright lights and mapped out the different constellations in her head. This was one of her favorite things to do when she was little, when she wasn't busy with piano lessons, schooling, sports and every other god-awful thing her parents made her do during the day: Harper would sneak out at night and lay in her backyard, an astrology book by her side and map out the stars. She never missed the chance to watch a meteor shower, lunar eclipse, even a harvest moon. It was an escape from everything and it allowed her to actually be and feel like a kid. Harper never really knew normal when she was little. Until she grew up. Harper shut her eyes for a moment and thought about all the things that had changed. She didn't want to but it was amazing how quickly things had changed in the past weeks. Harper was so caught up in her own thoughts she only heard the crunch of footsteps on grass until the person was right behind her. Harper bolted upright and wiped around into a crouched position. She stared up at the tall dark figure but was able to make out who it was with the bright moon shining above.

"I apologize," Erik said, a little startled himself, holding both hands up. Harper willed her heart rate to slow down and took a deep breath. She looked up at Erik and he did seem truly apologetic for scaring her. She gave him a small nod of her head and his hands fell to his sides. "I didn't mean to startle you."

"Well, we can never be too careful these days," she said as she relaxed her tense muscles and sat back down on the quilt, still facing Erik. "What are you doing out here?"

"I could ask you the same question," he said with muse in his voice. "We have a big day ahead of us tomorrow and it's quite lonely out here." His eyes swept the vast yard, mostly shrouded by darkness before looking back down at her.

"It's peaceful, not lonely and I came out here so I could clear my head and not think about tomorrow," she responded, with a little hostility in her voice. It didn't seem to bother Erik because he just shrugged his shoulders slightly and nodded his head. Then he gestured to the blanket with his hand.

"May I?"

Harper's heart did a little flip in her chest. He wanted to lay on the ground, in silence, in the middle of the night…. Together. What was she supposed to say, though? If Harper was in her right mind she'd tell him to 'bugger off' but then she thought of the way he spoke to her earlier that night: with worry and care. Also, the feeling of his thumb sliding against her skin—Harper felt her face heat up and cleared her throat, nodding.

"Sure, why not?"

A small smile crept onto Erik's face and Harper's face felt like it was on fire. Thank god it was dark out and her face covered by shadows. Harper turned back around and moved over on the quilt to make room for Erik to fit in beside her. She sat in an upright position until he sat down himself. He was still in his day clothes which meant he hadn't even tried to sleep yet. Harper sighed and lay back down on her back but Erik still sat upright. She looked up at the night sky but she could feel Erik's gaze on her. Harper rolled her eyes and turned her head to the side and looked up at him.

"What?"

"If I ask you again why you're out here, will you promise to be nice?" he asked with a little amusement. Harper couldn't help the small smile that formed on her lips and let out a small chuckle.

"Yes, I promise."

"Why are you out here by yourself?" he asked, never breaking eye contact with her. She answered, never breaking eye contact with him.

"When I was a girl, I used to sneak out of the house at night with a blanket and a book about the constellations. It was my only escape from the real world. I would find a space outside in my yard where I could see all of the stars." Harper looked back up at the sky and gestured to it with her hand. Erik tilted his head back to look above. "I would use the book and map out the constellations it talked about. I would do it so often that eventually I didn't need the book and I could find them all by myself and recite the stories behind each one." She turned her head back to look at Erik but he was still looking up.

"All of them?" he asked before looking back down at her.

"Well, I mean, when I was a girl I could. Now I can mostly just pick out the constellations but can't really remember their stories." Harper could tell Erik was thinking about something. She could almost see the gears moving in his head. Then he stretched out beside her on the quilt and tucked an arm behind his head. He lazily rolled his head towards her and his eyes were dark but she could still see the curiosity in them.

"Tell me about the ones you remember."

Harper smiled, genuinely and nodded. This was something that she used to be so passionate about and nobody had ever asked her to do this. She took in a deep breath and looked up at the sky.

"Okay… well I'm a bit rusty so bear with me if I have to retrace my steps," she said, her eyes searching the sky for her first constellation.

"For you, Doctor, I have all the time in the world."

Harper's gut knotted up and she almost let out a little girly laugh. What was wrong with her? She was struggling to find a constellation but finally found one. She pointed with her finger and traced the shape.

"See those there? That's Apus: The Bird of Paradise. It was first discovered in the late 16th century. Its name means "no feet" in Greek, and it represents a bird-of-paradise, which were once believed to lack feet. The orange giant Alpha Apodis, right there," Harper said, pointing as best she could, "is the brightest star in the constellation. Three of the star systems have been found to have planets."

"Right there is the Phoenix, based off Greek mythologies bird that literally rises from the ashes." Harper pointed out the stars and traced the shape of the constellation with her index finger. "The phoenix was said to have resembled an eagle with purple, red and gold feathers, and a scarlet and gold tail. It was said that the bird lived for 500 years. When it reached the end of its life span, the phoenix would build itself a nest at the top of a palm tree, using incense and cinnamon bark, then ignite the nest and die in the fire. Then, a new bird would be born from the ashes."

She turned her head to Erik, who was gazing up at the stars. She saw his eyes moving, tracing the outline of the Phoenix. She couldn't help but smile to herself.

"Getting bored yet?" Erik turned his attention to her.

"Not at all," he responded with a small smile. Harper turned her head back and found her next constellation. She told him the stories behind some and others she could not remember but still pointed them out.

"That one there is Perseus, the Hero." She traced the shape of the stars. She glanced at Erik but is eyes were not following her fingers. So, without thinking, she took his hand and lifted it up. Erik didn't pull away or object. She used his hand and guided his index finger to each star that made up the constellation.

"Yes, I see it now," he said, still not pulling his hand away from hers. Harper cleared her throat and nodded and was about to let go of his hand but saw the dark pigment on his forearm. Erik had pushed his sweater sleeves up to his elbows so his skin was visible. Without thinking again, Harper pulled Erik's arm closer to her and looked at the black ink. It was a straight but crude set of numbers imbedded in his skin.

214782.

Harper sat up slightly and ran a finger across the numbers. They were raised and crudely embedded into Erik's skin. Erik didn't flinch or pull away from her grasp. These numbers represented not only Erik's past, but millions of others tragic pasts'. Millions who were forced to live in grime and filth and work all day with no food or water. All because of who they were. Harper could see a future like that for mutants if the people's view of mutants wasn't changed.

"Did this hurt?" she asked, quietly. She ran her finger over the numbers again, images of what Charles had shown her before passing though her head. Harper heard Erik move and looked up at him to see that he was now sitting but he still didn't pull his arm away. He stared down at the numbers.

"Yes." Harper swallowed hard before she spoke.

"They only called you by this number? You never had a name?"

"For those years that I was in that hellhole, I was only summoned by 214782. For a time, I almost forgot my own name. But I didn't because of—"

"You don't have to say his name," Harper said quickly but hushed. She looked up into Erik's eyes. "You were so young."

"But I survived."

He was right. Erik was a survivor. Past, present and most likely in the future.

"I'm sorry," Harper said, letting go of his arm. Erik slowly pulled it away and pushed the sleeve of his sweater down.

"You don't have anything to apologize for."

"Well I probably brought up memories that you most likely want to not think about—"

Erik raised his hand, cutting her off from her babbling.

"Harper." Erik looked at her with a soft but gripping gaze. "We've already exchanged each other's pasts, remember?" Harper's throat felt tight and was afraid to speak so she only nodded her head. "Then let's not dwell on them. Moving forward is all we can do." Harper swallowed hard before speaking.

"Yes, I suppose you're right," she said, giving him a weak smile.

"You care for others, Doctor. That is a gift that most people do not possess these days." Harper quirked a brow and cocked her head to the side.

"Erik Lensherr. Did you just give me, the human, a compliment?" Erik smiled and laughed, heartily and it filled the silence of the night. When he stopped laughing he reached up and cupped his hand behind her head. His touch was surprisingly warm against her skin.

"I suppose I just did. Just don't expect many in the future," he said with a teasing undertone which made Harpers heart pound against her sternum. "It's late. We should go inside." His hand fell away from her head and he stood up. He offered her a hand to help her up but she declined.

"I'm going to stay out here just a little bit longer." Erik nodded and turned to leave. Harper looked down at her lap and didn't realize Erik had crouched down beside her until he kissed her on the temple. Surprised by the sudden action, Harper turned to look at him but there was no smile on his face but his expression wasn't serious either. It was… compassion.

"Do as you please, but do get some rest."

"I will," she chimed quietly. Erik smiled softly and nodded.

"Goodnight."

"Goodnight," she echoed. Erik stood up and walked back to the mansion. Her eyes never left his figure until he vanished through the doorway. Harper tilted her head back up to the sky. The first constellation that she saw was one of a story of love. Though the story ended in tragedy. And that's exactly how Harper felt if anything were to happen if she fell in love with Erik.