more werewolf fic--chapters 3 & 4
Here are the next two chapters! There may be a short break, since I'm leaving for England on Monday...but we're about half done, I think. Have some hurt/comfort, and cuddling.
Title: More Than All The World (The Werewolf’s Tale) (chapters 3 & 4 of probably 8) (chapters 1 & 2 here)
Rating: probably R by the end, but PG for now
Word Count: 4,177
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...I suspect it WOULD be a surprise, on your second day working somewhere, to walk in and find your employer playing chess with a wolf on the carpet! At least Charles is good at calming people down...
It shows Charles's bravery - because it does take a lot of guts to not flinch in the face of an angry wolf, telepathy or no - but also his practicality and intelligence
Oh, yay! :-) I liked that moment too; Charles IS a courageous person, and he's been turning his castle into a refuge for the extraordinary people for years, and he's not afraid of much (other than the emotional scars). He's a good match for Erik, in that way: neither of them is ever intimidated by the other, really.
I made myself want chocolate, too. Sadly, we have none. Not much food in the apartment, really, at this point. (Charles IS edible. Terrible pun perfectly allowed.) (And, yes, I did think of Erik's inability to have either Charles or chocolate! What a dreadful state of existence...) Also Erik appreciates the ear-scritches, but he'd rather die than admit it. :-p
Your dog has mastered the art of physical persuasion, obviously! And it works, right? (A husky on your foot would be much more problematic than a cat, I think, though mine does have wicked claws...)
I've never thought it was fair that people--even Erik and Raven, who want to celebrate mutation--keep telling Charles not to use his. Of course it IS scary, because the implications of that kind of power are horrific--but Charles tries so very hard to be a good person, and no one seems to recognize how exhausting that is. But mostly that moment was me trying to explain the silly hand gesture, in the film. He plainly doesn't *need* it, except maybe as a habit that helps him focus; but it does give an external signal...when he wants to send one.
Charles, when startled, isn't very good at hiding his reactions! Especially mind-to-mind. But it's okay, because Erik doesn't, er...mind. I do also like them holding hands, in that moment: so much reconnection, for Erik, with a happy memory, with pieces of himself, with Charles, who's right there with him, and it's the first time they've been able to hold hands...
Chapter five: revelations about Charles's past. Chapter six: revelations about Erik's escape, plus some action scenes, and hurt!Charles...
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neither of them is ever intimidated by the other, really.
Definitely. And that's important to them both because it's unusual for them both. Everyone is intimidated by Erik, and everyone WOULD be intimidated by Charles if they comprehended his full power (which Charles of course realizes).
*high pitched voice* Awwwww Erik likes ear scritches! Does the widdle boy want a belly wub? *evil grin*
Yep, my dog has us very well trained. He has claws, but I imagine a cat's would hurt more because they're so sharp.
Yes, and he definitely uses his telepathy without that signal sometimes. I've seen some fics where it's presented as not just a "tell" to others but a deliberate restraint on himself, so he doesn't unconsciously use his powers.
And serious double standard with the "mutant and proud." There's a clear asterisk that reads "except for telepaths." And yes, telepathy is scary, but so are Raven's and Erik's mutations! Raven's could be almost as invasive as telepathy because she could impersonate anyone -- the President, you, a member of your family, the person you trust most in the world. Erik can strangle you with your necklace or launch a missile at you or break into almost any bank or safe in the world. That's why most humans are afraid, not because all humans are automatically hateful bigots. Yet Erik and Raven react with the same gut fear that they condemn humans for. And they never seem to think about the fact that Charles clearly COULD just erase that fear and they'd never realize it. The fact that they bar Charles from their heads is already proof of Charles's ethics.
Eeeeeeee I can't wait for more!!!!
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And that's important to them both because it's unusual for them both
It's a relief, and a delight, really, to have someone who's an equal. And I suspect people are intimidated by Charles even more because they don't know what he's capable of, and there're no real outward 'tells' for his power...
Erik: no, I would not like a...NO, I said, it's impossible to look intimidating with one's paws in the air...all right maybe a little...but you're not allowed to tell anyone about this!
but a deliberate restraint on himself, so he doesn't unconsciously use his powers. Oh, interesting! And kind of sad, that he'd need to install those sorts of mental checks and reins. I can totally see him doing that to himself, believing it's for everyone else's best, too. And this And they never seem to think about the fact that Charles clearly COULD just erase that fear and they'd never realize it. The fact that they bar Charles from their heads is already proof of Charles's ethics.
...is so true, and yet no one ever says that, to him. No wonder he's so lonely. :-/ I imagine, over the years, Erik does finally realize how good a person Charles is, and that those things need to be said aloud, as well. The kind of quiet resolve isn't as flashy a variety of heroism as some others, perhaps, but it's real all the same.
A bit of part five down here: http://luninosity.livejournal.com/69091.html?thread=1710051#t1710051
I may make some sort of teaser post, tonight, before leaving...
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Mwaahahahhaa TOO LATE Erik, next sketch is of you asking for a belly rub!! (I posted the finished unicorn one btw. I'm not completely satisfied with it, but I never am with my art, so I figured I should post it.)
In AUs I think Erik realizes that. I think in canon (at least film canon) he convinces himself that Charles truly is naive and foolish and makes himself forget how damn hard heroism and optimism can be, since the core of the Brotherhood's philosophy comes to be that there can be no middle ground between mutant extermination and human extermination, that war is inevitable and so terrorism is justified. Because if Charles is not a naive fool then his long game has validity and Erik is no longer the righteous protector of mutantkind but rather the instigator of avoidable conflict and a murderer of civilians.
AkFKFJJAKFGJK that is teasing!! Ending with Charles disrobing in front of Erik? How cruel to every party! :D
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THIS IS HAPPENING, RIGHT? Wolf!Erik's adorableness should be celebrated! And I like the idea of this becoming an illustrated story...
I think that's true at least in film canon (comics canon is...all kinds of weird anyway); but there's also a kind of desperate sadness to it: he has to believe this, for his followers, for his cause, for his identity...even as he suspects that compromise may've been possible after all. (The Chris Claremont Magneto understood this perfectly. Too bad they've never captured that properly on screen.) And we've talked about how much Charles needs the interludes when he and Erik can run off and just be themselves; Erik needs those moments too, for pretty much those exact reasons...
Well, yes...but, also, there's a reason Charles hasn't been shirtless in front of Erik before...
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there's also a kind of desperate sadness to it: he has to believe this, for his followers, for his cause, for his identity...even as he suspects that compromise may've been possible after all.
Oh yes, definitely. I always feel as though Erik is very aware of the, well, humanity he and his followers sacrifice in their quest for mutant safety and supremacy. And while I feel that some Brotherhood members, such as Mystique, do so without remorse, I think Erik sees it as a wartime necessity, a price that he's paying for a greater good -- he'll be a weapon and abandon compassion and mercy because that's what he believes mutantkind needs. But I think part of him still recognizes that those "weak" qualities have their own kind of value. And that's one of the reasons he needs Charles -- to remind him that, even if he doesn't see himself as "human," he's still a man, and he can be more than a weapon, and he's allowed to feel hope, and he's capable of loving someone.
Scars I'm guessing? :( Poor Charles!!! *hugs* He needs to go cuddle wolf!Erik for a bit.
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All of this I think Erik sees it as a wartime necessity, a price that he's paying for a greater good -- he'll be a weapon and abandon compassion and mercy because that's what he believes mutantkind needs. But I think part of him still recognizes that those "weak" qualities have their own kind of value. And that's one of the reasons he needs Charles -- to remind him that, even if he doesn't see himself as "human," he's still a man, and he can be more than a weapon, and he's allowed to feel hope, and he's capable of loving someone.
...that's just lovely. And I do agree. Erik knows full well that Charles's way is *better*, in the sense of more desirable; he wants to be loved and to be able to love and to know compassion and peace. He just can't believe that Charles's dream is practical or achievable--in fact, the dream is only hiding the harshness of reality--and so, with all the sadness in the universe, he'll fight against Charles. And love him, at the same time. (Charles, of course, needs someone to give all the optimism a solid anchor, a counterweight, from time to time: what we hope people can do or be, versus what they so often choose to do and be.) (The other thing is, of course, for exactly the reasons you say, Erik is the one who can keep Charles from losing hope, when Professor X's fight feels like an endless losing battle; Erik will always tell him it's worthwhile, because Erik does believe it is.) (Also, on a personal level for them: Charles IS a constant in Erik's life, irritating, enthusiastic, challenging, kind, loving and beloved. Erik would never want to see him so badly scarred by despair that he'd stop being Erik's other half.)
Oh, yes, all the cuddling! Wolf!Erik is happy to provide warm-furred snuggles. Y'know, after the painful revelations...
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Eavesdropping, are you?
Mmm…maybe. You honestly think I smell delicious?
I-you-It’s a wolf thing!
Like sugared tea and parchment, you’re thinking. Illuminated manuscripts. I might not mind that one. Charles grinned at him, ducked into the wardrobe, started looking for a warmer and less decorated shirt, pulling the too-elaborate one off over his head. Better than wet dog.
Come here and I’ll make you smell of wet dog, Erik retorted, and then, when Charles didn’t emerge from the wardrobe, got up and trotted over there. Charles wasn’t looking, buried in clothing; Erik put a wet nose into his leg, and waited for the satisfying yelp.
Charles jumped, and spun around. Nearly fell over. Grabbed the nearest shirt.
Erik, shocked, forgot everything else, and stared.
Charles-
Erik, don’t-
Charles, what happened!
The scars were all too plain. Old, clearly. Not new. Long-healed tracks of silver, of twisted flesh, of shining snarled skin. They sliced through cinnamon-cloud freckles like deadly comets.
Please don’t, Charles whispered, and dropped his gaze, and Erik had the impression of blue eyes closing, hidden behind shaking hands. Hints of blood and cruelty and fire-heated iron, sizzling around the corners of those memories.
I don’t-I don’t tell people, Erik, please don’t look at me-
Charles, you-He never had seen Charles shirtless before. Charles’d always been careful to stay dressed, to sleep in an undershirt, to throw on clothing even before the castle servants came knocking with morning tea and toasted muffins. But Charles had been tired enough to forget, just now, with him. And Erik’d followed him into the wardrobe and made him remember.
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