I apologize to those who expected a long, drawn-out hurt-comfort piece. I didn't want endless chapters of angst and pain. Just a short, sweet fic with a training accident.
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Charles woke confused.
Especially about the fact that he was in his rat form and alone.
He Shifted, feeling a little off balance for a second, then pulled on the light gray sweats he used for working out. He had no idea where the clothes he had worn and remembered wearing had ended up. Vague memories teased him and when he opened the door and nearly ran into Hank, the memories became stronger.
"Professor! You're awake!"
"Hank."
"How do you feel?"
"Fine. Just a little confused about why I'm… oh… oh!"
Charles fell against the wall, eyes wide. The thing about memories was that while they were a bit scrambled and occasionally vague, they did contain the gist of things. Like looking at the movie version of the events that had unfolded, he witnessed his mistake when asking Mediah to try and push him away. He had misjudged the situation. The girl had been a little too tense and she had used more force than necessary. The idea had been to confuse him, dazzle him, then slip past him. Mediah had given him the full brain scrambler.
"Mediah," he managed. "Oh dear…"
Hank nodded, gently guiding him back into the room. "She's terribly upset about the accident."
"It wasn't her fault," Charles replied automatically.
"That's what everyone keeps telling her."
"Where is she?" he demanded.
"Training with Logan."
Charles stared at him. Hank smiled.
"Logan is more or less immune against attacks of the mind."
"Oh. Yes. Right." So much for an unscrambled brain.
Then the next thought hit.
"Erik!"
He recalled running in fear, feeling something chase him. Something terrible and fearful and powerful and deadly. The rat in him had realized that whoever it was, he was dangerous. And he had run. From Erik. The one person he implicitly and unquestioningly trusted with everything he was.
"He's in Westchester. Rosa called to let me know. He took this pretty hard. You were… terrified, Charles. Of Erik."
The telepath nodded. "My instincts."
"Yes."
"Which is why I became a rat?"
Another nod.
"Huh."
Charles looked at his hands if he was surprised to see them. In all his life, from puberty to now, he had never given in to his Shifter side. Never.
"How do you feel?" Hank asked, sounding a little worried.
Charles dredged up a smile. "Fine. This is just… I didn't expect it to be this strong. And Erik…"
He hadn't expected to wake up alone. Then again, Erik had done what he had needed to do: give Charles the safety to shake off the effects. He had removed his presence because he was a powerful alpha male, a predator, and a mutant with a direct line into Charles' brain. The anchor had done more harm than good in that moment. The rat was a prey animal and it had felt the Shark right next to him.
::Erik?:: he sent, trying to catch a feel of his lover.
What he got was a mind-block. Curious, he mused. He hadn't been aware of constructing one and Erik wasn't a telepath. He had no active psychic powers.
"I need to see him," he spoke out loud and got up determinedly.
"How about a shower and food first?" a new voice interrupted his attempt.
Raven stood in the doorway, hands on her hips. She didn't look like she would give an inch in this.
"Shower, Charles," she repeated. "Maybe you fell into the ocean, but that's no excuse."
Fell into the…
"Oh dear," he murmured when that particular – not very clear but definitely real – memory was unearthed.
She frowned, then pointed at the bathroom.
"I'm going, I'm going," Charles relented.
And food didn't sound too bad.
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For all the bad weather yesterday, it was a sunny, though not very warm day today. The day had started out with a fog hovering over the land, obscuring the trees and the rocks and the beach. It had been beautiful to watch, with the sun fighting its way through the mist and finally clearing the air.
Charles had tried to reach Erik to let him know he was okay, that Mediah's blast hadn't left him with any lingering effects, but so far no reply. Mediah had been beside herself and apologized over and over again. She had been downright scared.
"You did nothing wrong," Charles had tried to calm her. "I miscalculated."
Which had been the truth and meant he would have to approach her training from a different angle. Every Cursed who came to Xavier manor or to Westchester needed a different approach. Many had a physically manifested ability, but Mediah was a psychic mutant like Charles, who could manifest her powers like a blast. He had overestimated himself and underestimated her strength. She had grown incredibly fast ever since she had been allowed to be herself and Charles hadn't taken that into account.
She had also been terrified of Erik and what the powerful Shifter might do when he came back to the manor.
"Nothing. He will do nothing. Erik means you no harm," had been Charles' answer.
He knew his lover wasn't a violent man and while he reacted instinctually sometimes, he would never hurt the girl.
Mediah hadn't been convinced.
Charles found the tall, slender form of his partner at the docks. The fishing boats had yet to come back in and this early, with most inhabitants out to check the lobster traps, there were not many people around.
"I keep calling, but you're not picking up," Charles said casually when he approached the man sitting at the end of the pier.
Erik's head whipped around, his eyes sharp and cold and piercing. Anyone but Charles would probably have run scared, but the telepath had never been afraid of his lover. Looking into those eyes, more like a shark's than a humans, he could read everything in them. Then Erik was on his feet. Charles had no time to react when the inhumanly fast Shifter grabbed him and hugged him close.
"Charles!"
"Uh, hey," he managed, then his lips were caught in a hard, needy kiss. He felt happiness bubble up inside him and slipped his arms around his taller lover. "Hey," he repeated when they parted.
Erik was pinning him with those eyes. His was staring right into his mind and the block crumbled like brittle paper.
::I'm fine:: he answered the unspoken question. ::Completely::
No fear. No terror. No fervent wish to run and hide. Charles Xavier had never been afraid of Erik Lensherr. Never. His trust was complete, in the man, the Shifter, the Shark. He knew Erik would never do anything to willingly hurt him. The rat in him, his instinctual side without the human mind with its logic, had simply run.
::I don't fear you:: he drove the point home.
::You did::
::Survival::
::Against me:: Erik sounded almost hurt.
::Against a predator. I didn't recognize you, Erik. I do now. And I love and trust you::
The next kiss was just as hard. Erik radiated a need to reaffirm the link they shared that had Charles almost come in his pants right here and now.
Not here! Not now!
Erik laughed, drawing back. ::As kinky as you can be, I'm not in the mood to share.::
They were already drawing looks, some people looking rather amused.
::Maybe we should take this somewhere else?":: Charles murmured.
::Hm, like home?::
::Sounds very good to me::
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Mediah was a slight girl, dark-skinned with an Asian touch to her facial features. Her black hair was spiky and she loved to dye a few strands in an outrageously loud color. She loved the color red when it came to clothes and her wardrobe consisted mainly of all the different shades the color presented.
Right now the girl looked rather gray and pretty scared as she stood in front of Erik. Her eyes were filled with fear, but she had squared her shoulders and was looking at the taller adult.
Charles stood back, watching carefully. The teen had apologized profusely to him already, and he had told her that she didn't have to take the blame. But she had insisted to face Erik.
"I want to apologize for what I did to the Professor, Mr. Lensherr."
Erik regarded her without a visible emotion.
"I know you were mad that I harmed your partner," Mediah went on, voice quivering a little. "I didn't this to happen. I made a mistake."
"You were training."
She nodded, eyes filling a little.
"And you miscalculated."
Another nod.
"You need more training."
She trembled.
"Which is why you are here, correct?"
Mediah nodded.
"Charles made a mistake."
Her eyes grew even wider. "No!"
"He told me."
"But… no! It was my mistake! I never meant to hurt him, though."
"Good," Erik said. "I had hoped it wasn't with intent."
"I'd never…"
He raised a hand and Mediah fell silent. "It wasn't your fault, Mediah. All of you are here to learn about your abilities. This is part of what we do here."
She stared at him.
"I don't blame you. I never did." Erik gave her a smile. Not a shark smile. It was warm and friendly and something Charles had seen on his face a few times outside their private moments together.
"You… don't?"
"No."
Mediah appeared confused. Charles stepped forward, hands in his pockets, smiling at the teen.
"I told you. It was a mistake and we all make them. Next time I'm taking more precautions."
"You'll… still teach me?" she blurted.
"Of course."
Mediah was close to tears. She suddenly hugged him, then stepped back with an expression of horror, glancing at Erik.
"I…"
Erik nearly laughed out loud. He might be a possessive bastard when it came to his mate, but he wasn't that blind that he couldn't tell a friendly hug from a claim. The Shark wasn't even taking the girl seriously as a possible threat; not that Charles had given any indication that he might be tempted even a little.
::Erik!:: came the outraged cry.
He smirked at his lover, feeling strangely relaxed and playful.
"We'll change the training schedule and the exercises," Charles told the young mutant. "You'll get a handle on this. I promise."
She nodded, still too shocked about Erik's so peaceful behavior. When Mediah was gone, the Shark looked at the telepath.
"I need to work on my image, hm?"
"Tall, dark and handsome?"
Erik chuckled, wrapping an arm around the other man's waist and pulling him close. He pressed a kiss against one temple.
"They fear me."
"You are powerful, my friend. An Omega. A Shifter. You command respect."
"She was afraid I'd hurt her, Charles. It's not something I want those young Cursed ones to think unless they did something to deserve it. I'm not an animal."
"They'll learn," Charles only replied, leaning briefly into the embrace. "It's why they are here. To learn. And no, you're not an animal. Give it time. Their instincts need to relearn to include you, my friend."
"They don't seem to be afraid of Logan," the Shark grumbled.
"Logan's a completely different matter. And I'm not his mate."
"Damn right!" Erik caught himself, clenching his teeth. "Damnit!"
Charles smiled, sending calming waves. "Logan is dangerous, but hurting me gets a reaction out of you. Mediah was afraid you'd make her leave."
"I'd never…" He stopped. "She was?"
"Yes."
"You read her?"
"She was radiating that fear. It was not hard to hear."
"Damn."
Erik let himself be guided up the stairs to their rooms. He didn't want an image that projected 'dangerous killer' to the ones seeking help here. He liked respect, but not terror. He would have to work on that.
"Want me to talk to her again?"
"Maybe later. She needs to calm down first." Charles gave him a smile. "And she will." He pulled Erik close and kissed him. "It's a matter of exposure. Measured exposure."
Erik chuckled and held him close. "I think I can do that."
Because the school meant something to Charles and it meant something to him. His little rat was building an important community here, with Westchester and the manor. Mediah was part of that and Erik didn't want to be the big bad boogeyman.
::You aren't:: Charles told him. ::Just a bit more scary than little me::
Erik laughed. "Little? Maybe…"
"Erik!"
"…but you're the most dangerous man I know, Charles Xavier. And the most loveable."
Blue eyes deepened with emotions and Erik couldn't but kiss him, hunger rising inside him. Hunger for this man, for his lover and partner and so much more.
Charles wasn't protesting the sudden attack on his person. Actually, he did everything to encourage the matter.
He gasped as he felt white-hot lust course through him. A pair of lips slanted over his and his hands clenched into the shirt of his lover as he was thoroughly kissed. The leaner, taller man pressed up against him, only lessening the intense kiss as he came up for air.
It was time to take this to a room.
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Erik smiled when he felt the warm weight against him, soft skin against soft skin, moist lips placing a kiss on his chest. Blue eyes, bright and lively, filled with emotions he never dared to speak out loud, regarded him warmly. Erik buried his fingers in the wavy hair of his lover, felt the silky caress.
No fear.
No terror.
Only love and affection.
::I love you:: Charles said, voicing those thoughts.
No bad memories, no lingering bad taste. It had been an accident and everything was okay. Looking at Charles, his Charles, the man he loved, chased away the horror of the confused man who had tried to get away from him; who had jumped into the churning sea out of the sheer terror he had experienced.
Charles pushed himself up, leaning over Erik and kissing him. Psychically he pushed those terrible memories away, enveloped Erik in a warm embrace that radiated only positive emotions. Erik let him, only too willing to be pushed.
The telepath kissed a path down his neck, teething soft skin and making Erik squirm a little. Charles had bitten him there before, throughout orgasm, and it had pushed him over the edge with such force, he had been unable to move for a moment or two. Maybe more.
Damn his little rat. Charles knew what to do and when to get these reactions and Erik couldn't even protest. If at all. He loved this man so much. Right now the gentle teeth didn't get more than a twitch out of him. Having Charles suck him off after the first round had left Erik depleted.
Charles licked over the red skin, then rested his head on Erik's shoulder, arm over his chest, radiating contentment. The Shark played his fingers lazily over the skin of Charles' arm, feeling the same. He was more than satisfied and calm now. He was downright puddle-like.
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They drifted off after a while, sleeping through the nightly rainshower. Charles only woke briefly when the thunder was directly overhead, the lightning and rain a show to behold. Uncaring of the natural wonder outside he turned and buried his face against Erik, dropping off to sleep again.
fin!