random ficlet
So, like, a million years ago, pearl_o posted this picture of Jennifer Lawrence on tumblr with the comment that it looked like Modern!AU Raven visiting Charles and Erik's place. And I started having vague thoughts in this shared universe we've dabbled in where Charles and Erik are a married couple and Raven is a single mom who lives with them. So, whatever, I wrote a little thing about the first time Erik and Raven meet.
***
"You'll like her," Charles says for the fifth or sixth (hundredth) time. "I know she's young, but she's very mature for her age."
Erik doesn't doubt that Charles' sister is mature for her age. Charles is young and Charles is mature for his age and Erik suspects that the social and familial circumstances that lead to that helped Raven along as well.
"I'm sure I will," Erik says.
"You might even like her more than you like me," Charles says, with a laugh that borders on nervous, and Erik captures his wrist and pulls him to a stop, pressing him up against the kitchen wall and kissing him.
"I doubt I'll like her more than I like you," he assures Charles when he pulls away. When Charles doesn't respond immediately, Erik reaches out and brushes his hair behind his ear. "I've met Raven before," he adds. "It will be fine."
Though he has met Raven before, it was only briefly. She was at school abroad when Charles got his PhD and she's met up with him three or four times since coming back to the states, but Charles has taken those lunch dates alone. Erik picked him up once and dropped him off once, but only stuck around for the briefest of introductions ("Raven, this is Erik." "Oh my god, he's even hotter in person. How did you mange this? Are you mind controlling him or something?") before continuing on his way. There's nothing to indicate that he won't like her--she seems smart and funny and she and Charles adore each other. Charles, however, has been pacing a rut in the floor since he extended the invitation to Raven last week.
"Where's that Xavier arrogance that drives me crazy?" Erik asks.
"You've found my kryptonite," Charles says. He smiles a little, but Erik can tell that sentence is more truthful than anything else. Hm.
The buzzer keeps Erik from further investigation. Charles slides out from where Erik has him gently pinned and buzzes Raven up, then opens the door in anticipation. Erik shakes his head and grabs the plate of sandwiches He bought on his way home from the gym. He puts them on the coffee table and then hangs back to watch as the elevator in the hallway dings and Raven eventually appears in the open doorway, enveloping Charles in a hug. She's wearing heels and towering over him and Erik finds that strangely endearing.
"Oh, I missed you so much," Raven says.
"I've missed you too, darling," Charles says. "Come in, come in."
Charles steps back to allow Raven into the apartment and her eyes immediately begin to wander, absorbing everything about it. Erik watches her examine their home and tries to see the space through fresh eyes, wonders what it is she takes out of the haphazard pile of shoes next to the door and the color-coded boxes stacked against the wall next to the bookcase. It's odd--they've only been here for about six months, but it already feels so familiar, so much like home, that Erik forgets that, sometimes. They'd cleaned a bit before her arrival, but most of the cleaning involved putting things into neat piles that, from this new perspective, still look rather messy.
Oh well. Raven is eighteen. He can't imagine she'll judge them too harshly.
"You remember Erik, yes?" Charles says, and Raven makes a quiet noise of disbelief.
"No, Charles, I haven't bumped my head and suddenly forgotten a year's worth of constant babbling," she says. She offers Erik her hand and Erik shakes it. "You seriously can't find anything better to do than hang around my brother?"
"Well, all of my things are here," Erik says. He gestures around the room with his freehand.
"Yeah, I can tell, Charles isn't this organized and his design sense isn't this good," she says, and drops down onto the sofa. Erik likes her already, and he catches Charles' eye and smiles at him encouragingly. Charles smiles back, though it looks almost brittle until Erik reaches out and takes his hand, tugging him over so they can sit together, across from Raven, as she and Charles catch up.
Raven's starting her freshman year of college. She was accepted on the strength of her art portfolio, but she's thinking of switching to design or sculpture or maybe theatre with a specialty in make-up and costuming. Her nonchalance makes Charles nervous, Erik can tell. He's not sure why. It's not like either of them are lacking for funds. Raven can blow off college all together, spend the rest of her life lying by the pool, and still never want for anything. That's not a discussion Erik wants to have in front of Raven, however, so he steers the conversation away to more mundane matters, like Raven's friends and Charles' classes and boring domestic stories about the boring domestic life that Charles and Erik found themselves tripping into while Raven was abroad.
He likes her. She's sarcastic and smart and funny and not afraid of speaking her mind. He can see why Charles would say Erik might like her more than he likes Charles--she possesses several qualities that Erik looks for in friends, things that are lacking in Charles. She also managed to avoid the worst of the arrogance and dismissal that plague Charles and find their way into argument after argument. All that being said, however, at the end of the day, despite any qualities that Charles may or may not have, Erik is entirely smitten with and devoted to Charles above all else.
He wonders if somewhere in all of this is a conversation they need to have. He wouldn't be surprised, but for the moment, he's content to sit with his hand pressed to the small of Charles' back where his shirt rides up, sipping wine and listening to Charles and Raven tell ludicrous stories from their childhood.
***
"You'll like her," Charles says for the fifth or sixth (hundredth) time. "I know she's young, but she's very mature for her age."
Erik doesn't doubt that Charles' sister is mature for her age. Charles is young and Charles is mature for his age and Erik suspects that the social and familial circumstances that lead to that helped Raven along as well.
"I'm sure I will," Erik says.
"You might even like her more than you like me," Charles says, with a laugh that borders on nervous, and Erik captures his wrist and pulls him to a stop, pressing him up against the kitchen wall and kissing him.
"I doubt I'll like her more than I like you," he assures Charles when he pulls away. When Charles doesn't respond immediately, Erik reaches out and brushes his hair behind his ear. "I've met Raven before," he adds. "It will be fine."
Though he has met Raven before, it was only briefly. She was at school abroad when Charles got his PhD and she's met up with him three or four times since coming back to the states, but Charles has taken those lunch dates alone. Erik picked him up once and dropped him off once, but only stuck around for the briefest of introductions ("Raven, this is Erik." "Oh my god, he's even hotter in person. How did you mange this? Are you mind controlling him or something?") before continuing on his way. There's nothing to indicate that he won't like her--she seems smart and funny and she and Charles adore each other. Charles, however, has been pacing a rut in the floor since he extended the invitation to Raven last week.
"Where's that Xavier arrogance that drives me crazy?" Erik asks.
"You've found my kryptonite," Charles says. He smiles a little, but Erik can tell that sentence is more truthful than anything else. Hm.
The buzzer keeps Erik from further investigation. Charles slides out from where Erik has him gently pinned and buzzes Raven up, then opens the door in anticipation. Erik shakes his head and grabs the plate of sandwiches He bought on his way home from the gym. He puts them on the coffee table and then hangs back to watch as the elevator in the hallway dings and Raven eventually appears in the open doorway, enveloping Charles in a hug. She's wearing heels and towering over him and Erik finds that strangely endearing.
"Oh, I missed you so much," Raven says.
"I've missed you too, darling," Charles says. "Come in, come in."
Charles steps back to allow Raven into the apartment and her eyes immediately begin to wander, absorbing everything about it. Erik watches her examine their home and tries to see the space through fresh eyes, wonders what it is she takes out of the haphazard pile of shoes next to the door and the color-coded boxes stacked against the wall next to the bookcase. It's odd--they've only been here for about six months, but it already feels so familiar, so much like home, that Erik forgets that, sometimes. They'd cleaned a bit before her arrival, but most of the cleaning involved putting things into neat piles that, from this new perspective, still look rather messy.
Oh well. Raven is eighteen. He can't imagine she'll judge them too harshly.
"You remember Erik, yes?" Charles says, and Raven makes a quiet noise of disbelief.
"No, Charles, I haven't bumped my head and suddenly forgotten a year's worth of constant babbling," she says. She offers Erik her hand and Erik shakes it. "You seriously can't find anything better to do than hang around my brother?"
"Well, all of my things are here," Erik says. He gestures around the room with his freehand.
"Yeah, I can tell, Charles isn't this organized and his design sense isn't this good," she says, and drops down onto the sofa. Erik likes her already, and he catches Charles' eye and smiles at him encouragingly. Charles smiles back, though it looks almost brittle until Erik reaches out and takes his hand, tugging him over so they can sit together, across from Raven, as she and Charles catch up.
Raven's starting her freshman year of college. She was accepted on the strength of her art portfolio, but she's thinking of switching to design or sculpture or maybe theatre with a specialty in make-up and costuming. Her nonchalance makes Charles nervous, Erik can tell. He's not sure why. It's not like either of them are lacking for funds. Raven can blow off college all together, spend the rest of her life lying by the pool, and still never want for anything. That's not a discussion Erik wants to have in front of Raven, however, so he steers the conversation away to more mundane matters, like Raven's friends and Charles' classes and boring domestic stories about the boring domestic life that Charles and Erik found themselves tripping into while Raven was abroad.
He likes her. She's sarcastic and smart and funny and not afraid of speaking her mind. He can see why Charles would say Erik might like her more than he likes Charles--she possesses several qualities that Erik looks for in friends, things that are lacking in Charles. She also managed to avoid the worst of the arrogance and dismissal that plague Charles and find their way into argument after argument. All that being said, however, at the end of the day, despite any qualities that Charles may or may not have, Erik is entirely smitten with and devoted to Charles above all else.
He wonders if somewhere in all of this is a conversation they need to have. He wouldn't be surprised, but for the moment, he's content to sit with his hand pressed to the small of Charles' back where his shirt rides up, sipping wine and listening to Charles and Raven tell ludicrous stories from their childhood.