Fic: Beneath the Surface - (12/~15)
Title: Beneath the Surface (12/~15), 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11
Fandom: X-Men: First Class, Charles/Erik
Genre: AU; Drama/Romance
Rating: NC-17
Word Count: 7247
Summary: Charles is a young marine biologist and activist that, one day, makes the find of his lifetime. Inspired by this fanart
Author's Note: Still un-beta'ed. To make up for my late update now a pretty swift one. I had quite a run after the last chapter ^^ Thank you all so much for your lovely comments.
His sleepy drowsiness lifted with the soft patter of rain against the window, just a few drops here and there, not obscuring much of the daylight when Charles blinked his eyes open. And although he was still sleepy (and his body apparently ached in many places), a smile formed on his lips as soon as his eyes spotted the man lying next to him, facing him, sea-green eyes opened.
“Morning,” Charles mumbled, voice still thick with sleep. He stretched an arm out to lay it on Erik's shoulder and noticed with a small wince that even the muscles in his arms and chest felt slightly sore. Damn, he should really hit the gym again sometime. Or have sex more frequently.
“Morning,” Erik replied, his own voice already sounding much firmer than Charles', although he spoke softly, a smile twitching around his lips as well.
“What time is it?” Charles asked, unable to determine whether the faintly grayish daylight coming in through the half opened curtains was that of an early morning or much later towards noon already.
“I don't know,” Erik replied, one hand on Charles' waist on top of the blanket.
Sighing and suppressing another small wince (damn, his abdominal muscles felt worst), Charles rolled onto his back and reached for his cellphone on the night stand, checking the time. Nine-twenty-two.
“Gosh, I don't know when I've last slept that long,” he chuckled faintly and turned around again, snuggling closer towards Erik and into his arms, not quite ready to get up just yet.
“We fell asleep quite late,” Erik replied, and though Charles' head was nuzzled up to his chest he could hear the faint smirk on the other man's features. He let out another soft chuckle. They had, in fact, only fallen asleep very late last night, although they had taken a short nap after 'round two', before they had gone downstairs to grab a bite to eat. The others had very inconspicuously stared at books, the TV or their own feet, though it was perfectly clear they had been aware of what had been going on. Charles felt just a tiny bit embarrassed about the fact that probably the whole house must have heard them, but then again he couldn't care less, too happy and utterly satisfied (yet slightly achy) to let any kinds of negative thoughts linger on his mind for more than a split-second.
“Do you want to get breakfast?” Charles asked without lifting his head, content to just lie there against the warmth Erik was radiating, inhaling his manly but always fresh, clean and pleasant scent. He hoped the answer would be no.
“We can stay in bed for a little while longer,” Erik replied to his relief, but Charles had to laugh out in slight disbelief as Erik's hand traveled beneath the blanket and to Charles ass while he brushed a few gentle kisses against Charles' head.
“You're as insatiable as a teenager. At least give me five minutes to wake up, okay?”
The movement of Erik's hand stilled in response, and instead he wrapped it around Charles' back and pulled him a little closer into an affectionate embrace.
“Thanks,” Charles replied with a smile.
As his mind slowly became clearer, he suddenly had to frown and suppressed a faint sigh. “Oh no, I still have to have that talk with Moira. That is if that's still alright with you.”
Not lifting his head, Charles felt Erik nod, his chin pressing down against the top of Charles' head. “I suppose it would only be fair.”
“I suppose so,” Charles replied. “She knows that you're with us because Shaw's after you, but that's already all I told her. So...”
As soon as Charles had uttered the words, he could feel Erik tense beneath him, hearing his heart beat just a tiny bit faster, as well as the rather strained inhale of breath. Charles raised his head.
“Erik I'm sorry. Let's not think about that now, alright? Forget that I mentioned it,” he tried and leaned up to brush a kiss against Erik's lips.
The other man's features had gotten more serious though, contemplative as he seemed to look somewhere into the distance, his brow twitching softly in thought. “Maybe we should talk about it, though.”
Charles sighed faintly, not suppressing it this time as he leaned his upper body on his lower arms to be able to better look at Erik. “Alright. What do you want to talk about?”
Erik was quiet for a while, and it almost seemed like he regretted having said anything, a breathy half-snort leaving him before he shrugged for a fraction. “Maybe it's time that you and I discuss what we want to do. What I want to do,” he started then. “I know you've tried to figure this out with the others on my behalf until now, but... things have changed, have they not?”
As Erik looked straight into Charles' eyes it was impossible to evade the gaze, and though the reason that had brought on this change was one Charles was more grateful for than anything, he felt rather uneasy and worried. “Yes they have,” he replied nevertheless. “And you've as much right to decide our future steps as anyone of us, even more. But we're still in this together, all of us.”
“No, we're not, Charles. I realize that you are because...” He made a waving gesture with his hand, obviously not quite sure how to name it but making it very clear what he meant. “But the others only got dragged into this. I can tell them, at least, to stay out of this, though I wish the same applied to you.”
“Wait, what are you saying, Erik?” Charles asked, ever so slight panic rising in him at the sudden seriousness of the conversation. “We can't stop Shaw alone. The more we are the -“
“I don’t think you and I have the same idea of 'stopping' him,” Erik cut in and his gaze was hard as he looked straight into Charles' eyes, who found himself momentarily unable to reply. “I've been thinking about this,” Erik went on, surprisingly letting out a soft chuckle. “Not so much the past twenty-four hours or so, but before that. It doesn't seem like anything you and your friends are trying to do will show any results. The man is too cunning and powerful to be stopped with any of the steps you're willing to take.”
Their gazes were still locked, and Charles tried desperately to think of a possible interpretation of Erik's words that did not imply what was forming in the back of his mind as a really dark premonition. “Erik... what exactly do you want to do?”
The silence between them may have only lasted two or three seconds, but to Charles it felt long enough for his heart to start clenching in his chest, a knot forming in his throat that he tried to swallow down.
Erik's gaze flickered, and his lips opened a moment before he spoke, as if he only now fully made up his mind. “I'm going to kill Shaw.”
“God, Erik, no,” Charles gasped. “That's a very, very bad idea. We can still -“
“We can what, Charles? You don't know what he's capable of, you haven't seen the things he did. And it's not only about me any longer. I have you to protect now, as well.”
“God,” Charles sighed out, and he followed an impulse when he brought one hand to Erik's cheek, leaning in to kiss him firmly on the lips, so moved and touched by the words but filled with a desperate, gnawing fear in his chest .
“Erik, I can imagine what you feel. I don't know it, but I can imagine. But... listen,” he said as he looked Erik firmly in the eyes, his hand still on his cheek. “Killing is a horrible, horrible thing. It will not bring you peace. It will haunt you for the rest of your days because, other than Shaw, you're a person with a conscience. You know the difference between right and wrong. Please tell me that you realize this. That you know ending someone's life is not right.”
Erik exhaled through his nose and drew his gaze from Charles, again staring somewhere into the distance with a myriad of thoughts hidden behind his pale eyes. “Does someone like he really deserve to live? After all the lives he took or destroyed?”
“Maybe he doesn't,” Charles conceded. “But that doesn't mean you should be the one to kill him. You don't know what that would do to you. Trust me on this, Erik. There's a reason why men come home from war and are traumatized for life. Because killing destroys something in you.”
“Do you think I want to do this?” Erik now asked, his tone unusually vehement. “But it seems like I have no other choice. It seemed so much easier while I was still alone, because I thought…" He stopped, letting out another strained breath, and even though he didn't finish his sentence Charles was pretty sure Erik had meant to say that he had been prepared to die, then. That this fact had changed, maybe, probably due to him, should feel better than it did, better than a heavy weight in his chest that only got worse the longer Erik didn't look him in the eyes.
"We can't run and hide forever," Erik ended.
“He doesn't even know where we are,” Charles quickly cut in, fighting against the gut-wrenching feeling in his insides at the thought that Erik really very well might have died a long time ago, had he not been on his boat that day. He would never have met him, would never have fallen as quickly and as deeply in love with the most extraordinary person he had ever known. He would not have spent an entire afternoon and night in pure and utter bliss, filled with wonder and joy as he could not remember ever having known. “He can't find us here, and sooner or later we will figure something out.”
“How can you be so sure?”
Sadly, Charles had no immediate reply.
“See?” Erik replied, but there was no triumph in his tone.
“Erik, listen, alright? We've only looked into this whole thing for a few weeks. Do you know how long it usually takes lawyers and police officers or private detectives to figure out crimes and convict the culprits? It can take months or even years. Which is a damn long time, but it's not going take forever.”
There was a brief sign of contemplation on Erik's features, his lips slightly parted, brow twisting as he listened.
“I just know that justice sooner or later finds its way. That's what I trust in,” he continued - a little too optimistically, maybe, but he could not allow that weight of despair in his chest take over and win. He had been so happy, still was, and he fought to cling onto that feeling of joy and optimism and trust that they would find a way.
“There are still so many steps and measures we haven't yet considered, and even if things don't turn out as ideally as they could, there are plenty of other options, Erik. We could move away when worse comes to worse. Start a new life somewhere together. Hawaii maybe, or Australia. I heard the waters there are excellent for great white sharks,” he tried lightly, smiling a little brighter than he actually felt like, and he was relieved when he saw the right corner of Erik's mouth twitch upward for a tiny moment.
“We could build a house on the beach, just you and me. And I could teach children or just study the oceans. I have enough money to support both of us even if I don't find work. We could swim together every day like we did yesterday, and Shaw would never know where we are. We'd cover our tracks. Hell, I could even buy fake identities for both of us. It wouldn't be the first time someone succeeded with simply disappearing from the face of the earth.” As he spoke and watched Erik relax, Charles could almost envision it, for the moment ignoring all the obstacles and difficulties.
“You'd do that for me?” Erik asked, and he seemed honestly surprised, even overwhelmed as Charles nodded.
“Yes, I'd do that for you, Erik. Whatever it takes.”
He had not quite expected Erik reaching up with one hand to lay it on the back of Charles' neck and kiss him with such fierce gratitude that it momentarily took Charles' breath away. It was easy to forget what they had been talking about just moments ago, then. Easy to just get lost in that kiss that assured him beyond any doubt that this, them, was no brief fling, no fleeting infatuation that might and would change as their lives took different courses. As trivial as it sounded in his own head, not nearly enough to cover every aspect of it, Erik was the one. The person he had been looking for and longing for all his life, and the thought did not scare him in the slightest.
Though the kiss had started out as an affirmation of what they felt for each other, touched and moved, it soon turned into shorter kisses, lips wandering, hands drifting, the caresses banishing all dark thoughts and doubts and fears. It was almost surprisingly easy to laugh out softly as Charles felt Erik react to the touches, growing hard where Charles' thigh slid against him. A soft moan came over his lips as automatic response.
With a swift, strong movement, Erik turned them both around, lying on top of Charles and looking down at him. They both hadn't bothered putting on any clothes after the brief shower they had taken before going to sleep, and so Charles felt the exhilarating sensation of Erik's warm skin on his own as the blanket was being kicked down.
As he automatically spread his knees, Charles had to wince again with an ever so small feeling of unpleasantness. “Gosh, Erik, I'm sorry, but... I'm sore,” he said, chuckling sheepishly. “I won't be able to walk for days if you don't give me a break. Well okay, maybe not for days,” he added, seeing the slightly quizzical look on Erik's features.
“I'm sorry,” he said again, letting his hand caress the side of Erik's face, and even though Erik didn't complain or protest, Charles felt kind of bad about saying no. It had just been too amazing and touching to observe how Erik explored everything, how much he had enjoyed it so far, the three times they had had sex... had made love. That look on his face when he came, the sounds he made. Charles felt quite addicted to them already even though, right now, he had no immediate desire to repeat it. Maybe his fatigue would fade after a warm shower and an opulent breakfast. Or maybe...
“You know,” he started, biting his lower lip around the grin that spread on his features. “There are other things we could do.”
“Like what?” Erik asked, his eyes squinting a little in a mixture of skepticism and curiosity.
“Hm, I'd like to show you, if you don't mind,” Charles replied and gently pushed against Erik's chest, prompting him to slide off of him and lie on his back. Leaning in to kiss Erik on the lips briefly, Charles wasted no time. It had been a while since he had last done this - more than a while - but he felt excited at the thought of where his lips would soon be when he let them travel over Erik's neck and collarbone.
Tasting his smooth, slightly salty skin, he slid further down, lips and tongue teasing each nipple and receiving a softly hissed moan before his hand wrapped around Erik's erection, getting an even deeper, drawn-out breath in response. He stroked up a few times, bringing him to full hardness before Charles slid further down the bed, kneeling between Erik's legs. He locked gazes with Erik, and the patiently expectant glance he found filled Charles with so much affection that he knew that, yes, there was almost nothing he wouldn't do for this man, and little he wouldn't enjoy as long as they were together. This, however, ranked high on the list of things he would enjoy immensely.
Forcing his breath to go steady, ignoring the quicker beating of his heart - quite similar, really, to how he had felt yesterday when they had swam together - he settled comfortably at the foot of the bed, one arm beneath Erik's bent knee to steady himself as his hand remained wrapped around Erik's erection. Charles licked his lips, and then, keeping his eyes on Erik's and watching them widen and widen, he wrapped his mouth around the tip of Erik's cock, sucking it into his mouth as much as he could.
There was no way he could take him in completely - he was really too big for that, and Charles wasn't that practiced - but he let his tongue slide around the head, circling it as his lips went up and pushing it flat against the underside as his head slid down. It seemed to have the desired effect, and Charles had to fight the urge to smile and chuckle as he watched Erik's features twist with pleasure, his lips open in a breathless gasp but his eyes slowly falling shut.
Although he had proven rather extraordinary stamina last night, it didn't seem to take long now - he wouldn't be the first man who was neediest in the early morning hours. Charles enjoyed every second of it. The taste of him, the feeling of the soft skin sliding against his lips, the way his hips bucked up into Charles' mouth so that he had to hold him still with one hand before he found a rhythm to meet the thrusts. Those soft sighs and moans and growls then, one hand that gripped the bed sheets hard, nearly enough to tear them were they not wrapped so loosely around the mattress. And he knew every tiny or strong reaction was all due to him, every bead of sweat forming on Erik's forehead, his quickened breathing, his biting his lower lip, face twisting, brow in deep furrows as sound after sound escaped his throat and stumbled over his lips, his muscles tensing and his cock pulsing inside his mouth, until the evidence of his release tasted salty on Charles' tongue.
Grinning with joy and also pride, Charles crawled back up to Erik's side, letting him catch his breath for a moment, before he leaned in and brought his lips gently to Erik's.
“Did that make up for me being so reluctant and lazy?”
Erik's eyes widened for a split-second again, and a breathy chuckle escaped him. “I really wouldn't call that lazy,” he said, his tone not matching the otherwise teasing words. He seemed quite in awe, and it made Charles grin even wider.
“Hmm, okay then,” Charles replied, refraining from asking how Erik had liked it because that bit was quite obvious. He sunk back into the pillows, lying on his side to face Erik. Although Erik still seemed flushed, his breathing slowly starting to become even again, he suddenly let out a faint laugh.
“What?” Charles asked, raising his eyebrows, and Erik shrugged, pursing his lips for a moment.
“I think I understand what Alex meant with that remark he made about that mermaid movie.”
“Oohh,” Charles chuckled. “Right. You mean the underwater... blow job comment?”
“The term is a little misleading, don't you think?” Erik said, his eyes sparkling with amusement.
“You're right. I'm not even sure why it's called that. I should check out the etymology of that word. Could be interesting,” Charles replied, still smirking.
So did Erik, but to Charles' surprise he suddenly laughed out, his mouth opening wide as he flashed his teeth, shaking with a low staccato of chuckles as he looked at Charles.
“What? What is it now?” Charles half gasped, half laughed as well, the sounds coming from Erik much too contagious.
“I just thought of -“
“Oh god, don't say it!” Charles groaned out, hardly able to stop his laughter. “If you're thinking about what Sean was humming yesterday, just don't.”
“Why not?” Erik replied almost dryly. “That's exactly what just happened here, isn't it?”
The situation was so hilarious that Charles really couldn't help but laughing out, slightly higher giggles bubbling from his chest as he let his head sink against Erik's shoulder. Their earlier conversation was so far in the back of his mind that it only resurfaced as an afterthought, easy to push back and enjoy what they had, here and now.
They were both still smiling, chuckling here and there, for a while longer before another sound made Charles blush ever so slightly: the loud growling of his stomach.
“Breakfast then?” Erik asked as he reluctantly sat up. His gaze briefly drifted to the window where the few raindrops started to dry off in the sunlight that had breached the clouds. “I will go for a swim after.”
“Oh, you wanted to go?” Charles asked as he, too, straightened himself though he was highly tempted to just stay in bed. “How about I take a shower and get dressed, and you go for a swim. And then we'll have breakfast together.”
“If you can wait that long,” Erik replied, and Charles leaned in to kiss him briefly, touched at how considerate Erik could be.
“Yes. Say half an hour? Maybe I'll get the chance to already have that talk with Moira.” He bit his lip for a second, hoping the topic did not remind Erik of their previous one, but he observed no sign of it. Instead, Erik nodded with a smile and got out of bed, reaching for the swim trunks that lay somewhere on the ground, probably even still damp from their last swim, not that it mattered.
He stepped into them and briefly went back to Charles' side, bending over the bed to kiss him once more. “Half an hour.”
~*~
The hot shower had really been immensely relaxing, leaving only a small feeling of soreness in his muscles as Charles dried himself of and slipped into a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. He had taken his time, just standing under the spray for at least ten minutes. His hair was still towel damp when he made his way down the stairs, a warm gust of air coming into the wide open living room through the patio doors. So this would be a pleasant and nice day after all, he thought with a smile as he walked towards the large kitchen and dining table where Moira, Hank and Irene were sitting, having breakfast and coffee.
"Good morning," he greeted, receiving the same words in reply from Moira and Irene, while Hank just mumbled something under his breath and took another sip of his coffee.
"Hey dude," Charles heard Alex from the side, re-entering the living room from the guest bathroom. "Woah, what's that on your neck?"
Charles immediately brought his hand up, covering his skin, noticing that it did feel slightly sore beneath his fingertips, but he had no idea what Alex had seen since he hadn't bothered to shave this morning. The bathroom mirror had been fogged after his hot shower anyway.
"Looks like a hickey," Moira said, though the faintly teasing smirk on her features was accompanied by an almost exasperated sounding sigh.
"Oh god, shut up about that." Behind Charles, Raven had descended the stairs, a towel wrapped around her head, and she looked mildly panicked as she walked over to the table and sat down next to Irene.
Charles barely resisted the urge to roll his eyes as he, too, took a seat. "How old are you, precisely?"
Raven glanced up at him with a look of mild confusion before she groaned out while helping herself to a slice of toast and some eggs. "Okay, don't patronize me, Charles. You're my brother. This is just awkward."
"Interesting. Just a few weeks ago you seemed very interested in my love life," he replied calmly and seriously, actually enjoying for once not being on the receiving end of their banter.
"Yes," she said somewhat snappishly. "That doesn't mean I have to listen to every detail of it, though. And by that I don't mean you telling me about it afterwards, but actually hearing. Everything."
He could not help feeling his cheeks heat slightly, though the whole conversation was still rather amusing.
"You were kinda loud," Alex added quietly as he sat down at the table as well with a glass of fresh orange juice. The empty plate with some few leftovers in front of him indicated that he had already finished his breakfast before.
"Do you want some eggs and bacon?" Moira asked him, ignoring the teasing remarks around her.
"Just eggs, please. And I'll have some toast."
Realizing that the pan was almost empty, Moira got up and went over to the stove to prepare another helping, and Charles decided to change the topic, though he could not deny feeling somewhat… proud. So what if they had all heard? Awkward as it was, it was nothing to be ashamed of. Quite contrary.
"So, Hank, did you call your neighbor yesterday? Everything fine with your place and your turtle?"
The younger man nodded and looked up at him. "Yeah, all's fine. Leonard is doing good."
"Leonard?" Alex asked. "You named your turtle Leonard?"
Hank's brow twisted slightly. "Um. Yeah."
"Leonard McCoy?" Alex laughed out. "Dude, could you be a bigger geek?"
Now it was Hank who blushed faintly and busied himself with stirring his probably already cold coffee. He shrugged.
"What? Do you have another pet called Kirk and Spock too?"
Hank cleared his throat. "Spock was a goldfish. He died last year."
Raven and Irene now joined in to the chuckles. "It's nothing unusual, though," Irene spoke. "I mean Raven here had two gerbils named Aragorn and Arwen as a teenager. Isn't that right?"
"I did. Arwen bit Aragorn's tail off, though, so I had to separate them."
That caused further laughter, though Charles became slightly restless as he checked his watch. Erik would be back in ten minutes the latest, and he had actually wanted to fill Moira in on everything. He just couldn't make up his mind on whether it was smarter to do it with everyone else present or not.
They continued to chat about pets and childhood fan obsessions (or those of adults as well, since Hank still was a passionate Trekkie), until after Charles had emptied his plate (he would have a second helping when Erik joined them) Moira picked up the topic herself.
"Alright guys, I think you still wanted to tell me something," she started, eyeing Charles expectantly.
"Right," he said, suddenly feeling his throat slightly hoarse. With Alex and Hank finding out by coincidence it had been relatively easy. Actually telling somebody something as unbelievable as what they now all knew was a fact was an entirely different thing.
"Do you want us to leave?" Irene asked, and Charles let his gaze drift to each of them.
"No. I think… unless you want to leave you can stay," he replied, deciding it might actually be helpful to have some backup. Neither of them gave any signs that they wanted to get away, though Hank took out his cellphone and started playing around with it - possibly checking his email or something.
"Right," Charles repeated, not quite knowing how to start. "Right."
"Charles," Moira said calmly but urging him to continue. "Whatever it is, just tell me already, because I don't think I can handle the suspense for much longer."
He nodded, opening his mouth to speak, but no words came out. How on earth was he going to say this?
"Erik's a shark." Unsurprisingly, it was Alex who simply cut to the chase and replied for him after further moments of silence. He gave Charles an apologetic shrug after receiving a rather admonishing glare.
"He's not a shark," Raven cut in. Moira snorted softly at what had to seem like a very obvious correction. She had no idea. "He can transform into one. I think what he is would be commonly called a shape shifter."
"I've been thinking about this," Hank now said, his eyes mostly fixed on the surface of the table. "A shape shifter in folklore isn't exactly bound to changing into only one thing. I'd say he's more of a hybrid creature as you can find in ancient myth. Although most of those legendary figures, like the Minotaur, could not change between human and animal form. I'm… not really sure how to explain this scientifically, but…"
"It doesn't matter," Raven ended for him. "He's a -"
"Okay, okay, very funny," Moira interrupted them, raising one hand and squinting her eyes shut as a disbelieving smile formed on her lips. "Enough of that nonsense. So, what's really the deal with him?"
The others did indeed shut up as she looked straight at Charles, brows raised and a glance so piercing that it was impossible to lie to her. "Charles?"
He let out a helpless chuckle. "Raven and I did find him in the water like I told you. But I left something out. He… Well… Yes, when we pulled him on our boat he had…"
Moira did not draw her gaze from him.
"The lower half of his body was that of a shark," Charles ended quite quickly, only to see Moira throw her hands up and roll her eyes.
"Charles Francis Xavier, if you don't cut the crap this instant and tell me what the hell is going on I swear, I…" She didn't seem exactly sure what she was swearing, breathing in and out with exasperation and rising anger. He had somehow expected a reaction of the sort.
"He just did," Irene said softly, her hand on the table surface sliding towards where Moira was sitting, searching to reach her and briefly patting her lower arm. "I'm sure it sounds like a silly little prank to you, but they're not making this up."
"Nope," Alex added. "I saw it with my own two eyes."
"I don't believe this," Moira sighed and got up from her seat, taking a few steps into the kitchen but turning around on the spot again. "Seriously guys, this isn't funny. Just tell me already what is really up with that guy because -"
"Heeey." Another voice reached them from the open patio door, and as Charles turned around he saw Sean walk in, dressed in only a pair of wet swim trunks and a towel around his shoulders. "Got some coffee? Man, I must still be high," he chuckled as he came closer and reached for an empty cup on the table - the one that was meant for Erik, Charles supposed. "I just thought I saw that Erik dude in the water with a shark tail. Awesome. Man, those brownies really had it in them." He shook his head in amusement and sat down, not bothering that his wet trunks would soak the upholstery.
Moira stared at him. And back at Charles. Hank, Alex, Raven, all of who nodded at her. She sat down quite suddenly.
"So…" she started, her previously rather vehement voice now sounding much weaker. "He… You're not taking the piss out of me here?"
"No, Moira, we're not," Charles replied gently but firmly, giving her a smile that he hoped was calming and reassuring. All he saw from her was her brow twisting further, eyes drifting over the table without focus as she tried to process what she had just learned.
"And you mean he… he can change into something half shark, half human? Like… like a mermaid?"
"He can transform completely. Into a great white shark. That's how Shaw came across him and his family. He was out trophy hunting," Charles explained, ignoring the fact that Sean was sitting right beside them. Somehow he suspected the boy would either simply believe them or think he was, indeed, still on drugs.
"Oh no," Moira said, her befuddlement and shock slowly fading and making room for a look of compassion in her eyes, though she still seemed overwhelmed by the story.
"Who's Shaw?" Sean asked, mouthful of a piece of toast he had grabbed.
"Sean, why are you here?"
"Um…" The boy looked a little startled at Moira's sudden vehemence, and he swallowed down his bite. "We had no food in the fridge, and my roommate was having a party."
"Don't you have parents?"
"Well, yeah, but… they don't like me coming over and raiding the fridge," Sean explained as if that was an appropriate response.
"Of course," Moira groaned. "Well anyway. So Shaw's after Erik because…"
"We don't know exactly," Charles said. "But we suspect that he…" He had to sigh, not really feeling comfortable with letting his thoughts go in that direction, remembering the horrors Erik had told him about. "When he came across Erik and his parents, he first killed Erik's father and then captured him and his mother. He conducted experiments on them. Erik's mother died, but Erik could escape. I think that Shaw wants to resume those experiments, and he may be building that facility to do so. He told me he would make a great sum of money from it, so I suspect… Well, maybe he wants to… I don't know, show-case Erik," he said, shrugging briefly as he saw the disbelief on Moira's features, knowing that she must be thinking the same he had: even someone like Shaw could not get away with such a violation of human rights.
"Heh, I think I know that movie. Was that the one with Tom Hanks… no that was a Mermaid," Sean said.
"I'm really sorry I didn't tell you the whole truth sooner, Moira," Charles said. "But you would never have believed me if I had told you on the phone."
"I'm still finding it hard to believe it now," she replied with another sigh.
"Hey wait, you're not talking about a movie?"
"No, we're not, Sean," Moira said quickly. "What you just saw was no aftermath of a bad trip. But you're not going to tell anyone about this because nobody would believe you anyway. And I would have you fired."
The ginger-haired boy looked up at her, eyes big for a moment. "He's really a shark-maid… mer-shark… man-maiden shark thing? I'm not high?"
"Well, I don't know if you are, but if you haven't smoked anything and since you've only raided my fridge and there are no hash brownies anywhere in my house, no."
Charles was beginning to doubt it had been a good idea to simply continue talking with yet another person present; in fact, that thought had hit him when Moira had warned Sean not to disclose that information. But to his great astonishment Sean only nodded then, lips pursed for a moment as he swayed his head up and down.
"Okay. Wicked."
"Well that's a cool reaction if I've ever seen one," Alex remarked somewhat mockingly as he downed the rest of his orange juice.
"Hey can I have more eggs?" Sean asked, as if he really had just learned about something completely trivial and usual.
"No," Moira snapped, and Charles almost had to chuckle were it not for the fact that he felt a great wave of sympathy for her. She could be quite stern sometimes, but generally Moira was a very kind and generous person. The new information and the situation she had to deal with seemed to stress and even frighten her, judging from the look in her eyes. Luckily, Sean didn't even seem to feel offended. Instead, he just shrugged and helped himself to some cornflakes and milk, starting to eat noisily.
"I'll get out another set of dishes for Erik", Raven said and got up from her seat, obviously already having learned her way around the kitchen.
"I'm going to change," Hank said and got up as well, wearing a pair of sweatpants to his t-shirt as Charles could see now. Alex, who already was wearing nothing but swim shorts and a t-shirt, made to clear the table of things that weren't needed anymore, and Irene excused herself as well, leaving only Moira and Sean at the table with him now.
"So… as I have promised you, he's no criminal and no junkie," Charles tried, hoping to find a sign from her that she wasn't angry with him for dragging her into this business.
She sighed again but gave him a brief smile. "You wouldn't be so infatuated with him if he were."
Charles briefly bit his lower lip, not entirely sure whether the remark had been affectionate or slightly reproachful. When Moira reached over the table to briefly squeeze his hand, however, it became clear there were no hard feelings.
"Of course, from all the people I know you're the one most likely to fall in love with a shark."
Charles chuckled out in relief, sensing the trace of amusement in her words now. "You make that sound slightly perverted."
"Heh, like Troy McLure," Sean grinned and took another spoonful of cereal, crunching it loudly. "So you're gay?"
"Um…" Charles blinked slightly, not having expected the question since it was for one rather personal to ask someone you barely knew and secondly also more or less redundant. "I'm… bisexual, I guess."
"Ah," Sean nodded. "So Moira didn't make you gay?"
"SEAN!!"
While Charles was completely caught by surprise by the rather ridiculous question, Moira seemed mortified, covering her forehead with one hand.
"What the hell is wrong with you, Sean?"
The boy shrugged apologetically and gave Charles a faint grin before focusing on his breakfast again.
"It was just a joke," Moira explained when Charles looked at her quizzically. "Which I shouldn't have made in front of Sean," she added with emphasis.
"Moira, honestly, you…" Even though he knew it could have been nothing but a joke, Charles felt the slight urge to explain himself, to reassure her that this had nothing to do with her. "You're a wonderful, intelligent and beautiful woman. I don't think you could make anyone gay," he said, smiling, and squeezed her had in return.
Moira rolled her eyes and chuckled. "Well, thanks. I was briefly considering to abjure men and become a lesbian after our break-up," she joked the moment Raven came back to the table and sat down.
"So much more fun," she said jokingly.
"Ah, come on, that's not fair," Alex spoke lightly, drying a plate he had just washed with a kitchen towel as he came closer. "Please don't let all pretty women be out of reach for us guys. That would be cruel." The smile on his face was rather charming, typical of him when he was in a good mood, but it made a glow of color appear on Moira's cheeks.
Charles felt a smile lingering on his lips for a good while. He was utterly relieved that the conversation had, in the end, gone as smoothly as possible and that Moira did not seem to be too freaked out or angry with him. All in all, he could call himself a really lucky man to have friends like all of them - even that Sean guy, weird as he was, seemed decent and likeable enough. It was all too easy for him to draw optimism and strength from this knowledge, to enjoy himself despite everything, and to not feel guilty for being happy - happier than he had been in a long time, due to Erik.
The thought made him glance at his watch again, and a small frown formed on his features. Erik had meant to be back ten minutes ago.
"I'm sorry, Sean," he said and looked over to the young man who emptied his cereal bowl. "When you said you saw Erik in the water where was that exactly?"
"A bit further down there," he replied, pointing in the direction of where Erik and Charles had been yesterday, too.
"Did he say anything to you?"
"Nah. I was too far away. Don't even know if he saw me," Sean replied.
"Ah."
Charles could not help the frown lingering on his face, though he wasn't exactly worried. Maybe Erik had just forgotten the time, enjoying himself too much in the water, and with a smile he remembered their little adventure, remembered how amazing it had been to see Erik in the water, in his shark shape…
"I can make something else for him when he's back," Moira said. "We've still got enough left, and it's no hassle."
"Thank you, Moira. You know, I'll go looking for him, though."
As he stepped outside, Charles suddenly had a very odd sense of foreboding, as if his optimistic thoughts just now had been completely unrealistic, and he had to scold and force himself not to paint things black prematurely. Shaking his head to himself, he let out a faint chuckle. He had always been a bit of a fretting nature when it came to the people he cared about the most.
Walking down the beach towards the spot where they had left their things yesterday, he looked around. There weren't many people on the beach this morning. Most of them were probably still at breakfast, or working, or simply hadn't trusted the weather to stay nice. Two kids were playing Frisbee a few yards away in the other direction, an elderly woman walked her dog, and there was one figure in the water somewhere further out, but as Charles squinted in the direction he could recognize long hair and a bright pink bikini top.
He walked on and directed his gaze somewhere further north, one hand shielding his eyes against the sunlight reflecting on the water. And finally, he spotted a little bundle in the sand, the same kind of blue and yellow colored beach towel Erik had taken with him, and Charles smiled. At least he now knew where Erik would be coming back to. He already regretted not having taken his own swim wear and a towel - he could have joined Erik if only for a few minutes - until something made him stop and squint in confusion. The towel lay there on the ground, crumpled and looking wet, but the swim trunks Erik had been wearing were not there or anywhere else to be seen. Had he lost them in the water? He must have taken them off if he had transformed, which, according to Sean he definitely had. Charles bent down to pick the towel up.
Suddenly, he felt like all air was pressed out of his lungs as he stared at the dark, reddish spot on the pale sand, a few dots speckled around the larger on in the middle. Frantically, he felt the towel, ran his fingers across it and looked into his palm, a red smeared stain on his skin.
"Erik," he gasped, his voice hitching in the back of his throat, his heart suddenly thumping painfully in his chest as he looked back onto the water.
"Erik? Erik??!"
~ TBC ~
Chapter 13
A/N:
You're probably hating me now, don't you? I'm sorry... I promise to get the next chapter done quickly so that you don't have to wait too long to find out what's going on.
@ crimsoncrow This was the best I could do ;) To include your suggestion elsewhere wouldn't have fit, so I hope you like the way I put it in, even if it wasn't 100% like you had suggested.
Fandom: X-Men: First Class, Charles/Erik
Genre: AU; Drama/Romance
Rating: NC-17
Word Count: 7247
Summary: Charles is a young marine biologist and activist that, one day, makes the find of his lifetime. Inspired by this fanart
Author's Note: Still un-beta'ed. To make up for my late update now a pretty swift one. I had quite a run after the last chapter ^^ Thank you all so much for your lovely comments.
His sleepy drowsiness lifted with the soft patter of rain against the window, just a few drops here and there, not obscuring much of the daylight when Charles blinked his eyes open. And although he was still sleepy (and his body apparently ached in many places), a smile formed on his lips as soon as his eyes spotted the man lying next to him, facing him, sea-green eyes opened.
“Morning,” Charles mumbled, voice still thick with sleep. He stretched an arm out to lay it on Erik's shoulder and noticed with a small wince that even the muscles in his arms and chest felt slightly sore. Damn, he should really hit the gym again sometime. Or have sex more frequently.
“Morning,” Erik replied, his own voice already sounding much firmer than Charles', although he spoke softly, a smile twitching around his lips as well.
“What time is it?” Charles asked, unable to determine whether the faintly grayish daylight coming in through the half opened curtains was that of an early morning or much later towards noon already.
“I don't know,” Erik replied, one hand on Charles' waist on top of the blanket.
Sighing and suppressing another small wince (damn, his abdominal muscles felt worst), Charles rolled onto his back and reached for his cellphone on the night stand, checking the time. Nine-twenty-two.
“Gosh, I don't know when I've last slept that long,” he chuckled faintly and turned around again, snuggling closer towards Erik and into his arms, not quite ready to get up just yet.
“We fell asleep quite late,” Erik replied, and though Charles' head was nuzzled up to his chest he could hear the faint smirk on the other man's features. He let out another soft chuckle. They had, in fact, only fallen asleep very late last night, although they had taken a short nap after 'round two', before they had gone downstairs to grab a bite to eat. The others had very inconspicuously stared at books, the TV or their own feet, though it was perfectly clear they had been aware of what had been going on. Charles felt just a tiny bit embarrassed about the fact that probably the whole house must have heard them, but then again he couldn't care less, too happy and utterly satisfied (yet slightly achy) to let any kinds of negative thoughts linger on his mind for more than a split-second.
“Do you want to get breakfast?” Charles asked without lifting his head, content to just lie there against the warmth Erik was radiating, inhaling his manly but always fresh, clean and pleasant scent. He hoped the answer would be no.
“We can stay in bed for a little while longer,” Erik replied to his relief, but Charles had to laugh out in slight disbelief as Erik's hand traveled beneath the blanket and to Charles ass while he brushed a few gentle kisses against Charles' head.
“You're as insatiable as a teenager. At least give me five minutes to wake up, okay?”
The movement of Erik's hand stilled in response, and instead he wrapped it around Charles' back and pulled him a little closer into an affectionate embrace.
“Thanks,” Charles replied with a smile.
As his mind slowly became clearer, he suddenly had to frown and suppressed a faint sigh. “Oh no, I still have to have that talk with Moira. That is if that's still alright with you.”
Not lifting his head, Charles felt Erik nod, his chin pressing down against the top of Charles' head. “I suppose it would only be fair.”
“I suppose so,” Charles replied. “She knows that you're with us because Shaw's after you, but that's already all I told her. So...”
As soon as Charles had uttered the words, he could feel Erik tense beneath him, hearing his heart beat just a tiny bit faster, as well as the rather strained inhale of breath. Charles raised his head.
“Erik I'm sorry. Let's not think about that now, alright? Forget that I mentioned it,” he tried and leaned up to brush a kiss against Erik's lips.
The other man's features had gotten more serious though, contemplative as he seemed to look somewhere into the distance, his brow twitching softly in thought. “Maybe we should talk about it, though.”
Charles sighed faintly, not suppressing it this time as he leaned his upper body on his lower arms to be able to better look at Erik. “Alright. What do you want to talk about?”
Erik was quiet for a while, and it almost seemed like he regretted having said anything, a breathy half-snort leaving him before he shrugged for a fraction. “Maybe it's time that you and I discuss what we want to do. What I want to do,” he started then. “I know you've tried to figure this out with the others on my behalf until now, but... things have changed, have they not?”
As Erik looked straight into Charles' eyes it was impossible to evade the gaze, and though the reason that had brought on this change was one Charles was more grateful for than anything, he felt rather uneasy and worried. “Yes they have,” he replied nevertheless. “And you've as much right to decide our future steps as anyone of us, even more. But we're still in this together, all of us.”
“No, we're not, Charles. I realize that you are because...” He made a waving gesture with his hand, obviously not quite sure how to name it but making it very clear what he meant. “But the others only got dragged into this. I can tell them, at least, to stay out of this, though I wish the same applied to you.”
“Wait, what are you saying, Erik?” Charles asked, ever so slight panic rising in him at the sudden seriousness of the conversation. “We can't stop Shaw alone. The more we are the -“
“I don’t think you and I have the same idea of 'stopping' him,” Erik cut in and his gaze was hard as he looked straight into Charles' eyes, who found himself momentarily unable to reply. “I've been thinking about this,” Erik went on, surprisingly letting out a soft chuckle. “Not so much the past twenty-four hours or so, but before that. It doesn't seem like anything you and your friends are trying to do will show any results. The man is too cunning and powerful to be stopped with any of the steps you're willing to take.”
Their gazes were still locked, and Charles tried desperately to think of a possible interpretation of Erik's words that did not imply what was forming in the back of his mind as a really dark premonition. “Erik... what exactly do you want to do?”
The silence between them may have only lasted two or three seconds, but to Charles it felt long enough for his heart to start clenching in his chest, a knot forming in his throat that he tried to swallow down.
Erik's gaze flickered, and his lips opened a moment before he spoke, as if he only now fully made up his mind. “I'm going to kill Shaw.”
“God, Erik, no,” Charles gasped. “That's a very, very bad idea. We can still -“
“We can what, Charles? You don't know what he's capable of, you haven't seen the things he did. And it's not only about me any longer. I have you to protect now, as well.”
“God,” Charles sighed out, and he followed an impulse when he brought one hand to Erik's cheek, leaning in to kiss him firmly on the lips, so moved and touched by the words but filled with a desperate, gnawing fear in his chest .
“Erik, I can imagine what you feel. I don't know it, but I can imagine. But... listen,” he said as he looked Erik firmly in the eyes, his hand still on his cheek. “Killing is a horrible, horrible thing. It will not bring you peace. It will haunt you for the rest of your days because, other than Shaw, you're a person with a conscience. You know the difference between right and wrong. Please tell me that you realize this. That you know ending someone's life is not right.”
Erik exhaled through his nose and drew his gaze from Charles, again staring somewhere into the distance with a myriad of thoughts hidden behind his pale eyes. “Does someone like he really deserve to live? After all the lives he took or destroyed?”
“Maybe he doesn't,” Charles conceded. “But that doesn't mean you should be the one to kill him. You don't know what that would do to you. Trust me on this, Erik. There's a reason why men come home from war and are traumatized for life. Because killing destroys something in you.”
“Do you think I want to do this?” Erik now asked, his tone unusually vehement. “But it seems like I have no other choice. It seemed so much easier while I was still alone, because I thought…" He stopped, letting out another strained breath, and even though he didn't finish his sentence Charles was pretty sure Erik had meant to say that he had been prepared to die, then. That this fact had changed, maybe, probably due to him, should feel better than it did, better than a heavy weight in his chest that only got worse the longer Erik didn't look him in the eyes.
"We can't run and hide forever," Erik ended.
“He doesn't even know where we are,” Charles quickly cut in, fighting against the gut-wrenching feeling in his insides at the thought that Erik really very well might have died a long time ago, had he not been on his boat that day. He would never have met him, would never have fallen as quickly and as deeply in love with the most extraordinary person he had ever known. He would not have spent an entire afternoon and night in pure and utter bliss, filled with wonder and joy as he could not remember ever having known. “He can't find us here, and sooner or later we will figure something out.”
“How can you be so sure?”
Sadly, Charles had no immediate reply.
“See?” Erik replied, but there was no triumph in his tone.
“Erik, listen, alright? We've only looked into this whole thing for a few weeks. Do you know how long it usually takes lawyers and police officers or private detectives to figure out crimes and convict the culprits? It can take months or even years. Which is a damn long time, but it's not going take forever.”
There was a brief sign of contemplation on Erik's features, his lips slightly parted, brow twisting as he listened.
“I just know that justice sooner or later finds its way. That's what I trust in,” he continued - a little too optimistically, maybe, but he could not allow that weight of despair in his chest take over and win. He had been so happy, still was, and he fought to cling onto that feeling of joy and optimism and trust that they would find a way.
“There are still so many steps and measures we haven't yet considered, and even if things don't turn out as ideally as they could, there are plenty of other options, Erik. We could move away when worse comes to worse. Start a new life somewhere together. Hawaii maybe, or Australia. I heard the waters there are excellent for great white sharks,” he tried lightly, smiling a little brighter than he actually felt like, and he was relieved when he saw the right corner of Erik's mouth twitch upward for a tiny moment.
“We could build a house on the beach, just you and me. And I could teach children or just study the oceans. I have enough money to support both of us even if I don't find work. We could swim together every day like we did yesterday, and Shaw would never know where we are. We'd cover our tracks. Hell, I could even buy fake identities for both of us. It wouldn't be the first time someone succeeded with simply disappearing from the face of the earth.” As he spoke and watched Erik relax, Charles could almost envision it, for the moment ignoring all the obstacles and difficulties.
“You'd do that for me?” Erik asked, and he seemed honestly surprised, even overwhelmed as Charles nodded.
“Yes, I'd do that for you, Erik. Whatever it takes.”
He had not quite expected Erik reaching up with one hand to lay it on the back of Charles' neck and kiss him with such fierce gratitude that it momentarily took Charles' breath away. It was easy to forget what they had been talking about just moments ago, then. Easy to just get lost in that kiss that assured him beyond any doubt that this, them, was no brief fling, no fleeting infatuation that might and would change as their lives took different courses. As trivial as it sounded in his own head, not nearly enough to cover every aspect of it, Erik was the one. The person he had been looking for and longing for all his life, and the thought did not scare him in the slightest.
Though the kiss had started out as an affirmation of what they felt for each other, touched and moved, it soon turned into shorter kisses, lips wandering, hands drifting, the caresses banishing all dark thoughts and doubts and fears. It was almost surprisingly easy to laugh out softly as Charles felt Erik react to the touches, growing hard where Charles' thigh slid against him. A soft moan came over his lips as automatic response.
With a swift, strong movement, Erik turned them both around, lying on top of Charles and looking down at him. They both hadn't bothered putting on any clothes after the brief shower they had taken before going to sleep, and so Charles felt the exhilarating sensation of Erik's warm skin on his own as the blanket was being kicked down.
As he automatically spread his knees, Charles had to wince again with an ever so small feeling of unpleasantness. “Gosh, Erik, I'm sorry, but... I'm sore,” he said, chuckling sheepishly. “I won't be able to walk for days if you don't give me a break. Well okay, maybe not for days,” he added, seeing the slightly quizzical look on Erik's features.
“I'm sorry,” he said again, letting his hand caress the side of Erik's face, and even though Erik didn't complain or protest, Charles felt kind of bad about saying no. It had just been too amazing and touching to observe how Erik explored everything, how much he had enjoyed it so far, the three times they had had sex... had made love. That look on his face when he came, the sounds he made. Charles felt quite addicted to them already even though, right now, he had no immediate desire to repeat it. Maybe his fatigue would fade after a warm shower and an opulent breakfast. Or maybe...
“You know,” he started, biting his lower lip around the grin that spread on his features. “There are other things we could do.”
“Like what?” Erik asked, his eyes squinting a little in a mixture of skepticism and curiosity.
“Hm, I'd like to show you, if you don't mind,” Charles replied and gently pushed against Erik's chest, prompting him to slide off of him and lie on his back. Leaning in to kiss Erik on the lips briefly, Charles wasted no time. It had been a while since he had last done this - more than a while - but he felt excited at the thought of where his lips would soon be when he let them travel over Erik's neck and collarbone.
Tasting his smooth, slightly salty skin, he slid further down, lips and tongue teasing each nipple and receiving a softly hissed moan before his hand wrapped around Erik's erection, getting an even deeper, drawn-out breath in response. He stroked up a few times, bringing him to full hardness before Charles slid further down the bed, kneeling between Erik's legs. He locked gazes with Erik, and the patiently expectant glance he found filled Charles with so much affection that he knew that, yes, there was almost nothing he wouldn't do for this man, and little he wouldn't enjoy as long as they were together. This, however, ranked high on the list of things he would enjoy immensely.
Forcing his breath to go steady, ignoring the quicker beating of his heart - quite similar, really, to how he had felt yesterday when they had swam together - he settled comfortably at the foot of the bed, one arm beneath Erik's bent knee to steady himself as his hand remained wrapped around Erik's erection. Charles licked his lips, and then, keeping his eyes on Erik's and watching them widen and widen, he wrapped his mouth around the tip of Erik's cock, sucking it into his mouth as much as he could.
There was no way he could take him in completely - he was really too big for that, and Charles wasn't that practiced - but he let his tongue slide around the head, circling it as his lips went up and pushing it flat against the underside as his head slid down. It seemed to have the desired effect, and Charles had to fight the urge to smile and chuckle as he watched Erik's features twist with pleasure, his lips open in a breathless gasp but his eyes slowly falling shut.
Although he had proven rather extraordinary stamina last night, it didn't seem to take long now - he wouldn't be the first man who was neediest in the early morning hours. Charles enjoyed every second of it. The taste of him, the feeling of the soft skin sliding against his lips, the way his hips bucked up into Charles' mouth so that he had to hold him still with one hand before he found a rhythm to meet the thrusts. Those soft sighs and moans and growls then, one hand that gripped the bed sheets hard, nearly enough to tear them were they not wrapped so loosely around the mattress. And he knew every tiny or strong reaction was all due to him, every bead of sweat forming on Erik's forehead, his quickened breathing, his biting his lower lip, face twisting, brow in deep furrows as sound after sound escaped his throat and stumbled over his lips, his muscles tensing and his cock pulsing inside his mouth, until the evidence of his release tasted salty on Charles' tongue.
Grinning with joy and also pride, Charles crawled back up to Erik's side, letting him catch his breath for a moment, before he leaned in and brought his lips gently to Erik's.
“Did that make up for me being so reluctant and lazy?”
Erik's eyes widened for a split-second again, and a breathy chuckle escaped him. “I really wouldn't call that lazy,” he said, his tone not matching the otherwise teasing words. He seemed quite in awe, and it made Charles grin even wider.
“Hmm, okay then,” Charles replied, refraining from asking how Erik had liked it because that bit was quite obvious. He sunk back into the pillows, lying on his side to face Erik. Although Erik still seemed flushed, his breathing slowly starting to become even again, he suddenly let out a faint laugh.
“What?” Charles asked, raising his eyebrows, and Erik shrugged, pursing his lips for a moment.
“I think I understand what Alex meant with that remark he made about that mermaid movie.”
“Oohh,” Charles chuckled. “Right. You mean the underwater... blow job comment?”
“The term is a little misleading, don't you think?” Erik said, his eyes sparkling with amusement.
“You're right. I'm not even sure why it's called that. I should check out the etymology of that word. Could be interesting,” Charles replied, still smirking.
So did Erik, but to Charles' surprise he suddenly laughed out, his mouth opening wide as he flashed his teeth, shaking with a low staccato of chuckles as he looked at Charles.
“What? What is it now?” Charles half gasped, half laughed as well, the sounds coming from Erik much too contagious.
“I just thought of -“
“Oh god, don't say it!” Charles groaned out, hardly able to stop his laughter. “If you're thinking about what Sean was humming yesterday, just don't.”
“Why not?” Erik replied almost dryly. “That's exactly what just happened here, isn't it?”
The situation was so hilarious that Charles really couldn't help but laughing out, slightly higher giggles bubbling from his chest as he let his head sink against Erik's shoulder. Their earlier conversation was so far in the back of his mind that it only resurfaced as an afterthought, easy to push back and enjoy what they had, here and now.
They were both still smiling, chuckling here and there, for a while longer before another sound made Charles blush ever so slightly: the loud growling of his stomach.
“Breakfast then?” Erik asked as he reluctantly sat up. His gaze briefly drifted to the window where the few raindrops started to dry off in the sunlight that had breached the clouds. “I will go for a swim after.”
“Oh, you wanted to go?” Charles asked as he, too, straightened himself though he was highly tempted to just stay in bed. “How about I take a shower and get dressed, and you go for a swim. And then we'll have breakfast together.”
“If you can wait that long,” Erik replied, and Charles leaned in to kiss him briefly, touched at how considerate Erik could be.
“Yes. Say half an hour? Maybe I'll get the chance to already have that talk with Moira.” He bit his lip for a second, hoping the topic did not remind Erik of their previous one, but he observed no sign of it. Instead, Erik nodded with a smile and got out of bed, reaching for the swim trunks that lay somewhere on the ground, probably even still damp from their last swim, not that it mattered.
He stepped into them and briefly went back to Charles' side, bending over the bed to kiss him once more. “Half an hour.”
~*~
The hot shower had really been immensely relaxing, leaving only a small feeling of soreness in his muscles as Charles dried himself of and slipped into a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. He had taken his time, just standing under the spray for at least ten minutes. His hair was still towel damp when he made his way down the stairs, a warm gust of air coming into the wide open living room through the patio doors. So this would be a pleasant and nice day after all, he thought with a smile as he walked towards the large kitchen and dining table where Moira, Hank and Irene were sitting, having breakfast and coffee.
"Good morning," he greeted, receiving the same words in reply from Moira and Irene, while Hank just mumbled something under his breath and took another sip of his coffee.
"Hey dude," Charles heard Alex from the side, re-entering the living room from the guest bathroom. "Woah, what's that on your neck?"
Charles immediately brought his hand up, covering his skin, noticing that it did feel slightly sore beneath his fingertips, but he had no idea what Alex had seen since he hadn't bothered to shave this morning. The bathroom mirror had been fogged after his hot shower anyway.
"Looks like a hickey," Moira said, though the faintly teasing smirk on her features was accompanied by an almost exasperated sounding sigh.
"Oh god, shut up about that." Behind Charles, Raven had descended the stairs, a towel wrapped around her head, and she looked mildly panicked as she walked over to the table and sat down next to Irene.
Charles barely resisted the urge to roll his eyes as he, too, took a seat. "How old are you, precisely?"
Raven glanced up at him with a look of mild confusion before she groaned out while helping herself to a slice of toast and some eggs. "Okay, don't patronize me, Charles. You're my brother. This is just awkward."
"Interesting. Just a few weeks ago you seemed very interested in my love life," he replied calmly and seriously, actually enjoying for once not being on the receiving end of their banter.
"Yes," she said somewhat snappishly. "That doesn't mean I have to listen to every detail of it, though. And by that I don't mean you telling me about it afterwards, but actually hearing. Everything."
He could not help feeling his cheeks heat slightly, though the whole conversation was still rather amusing.
"You were kinda loud," Alex added quietly as he sat down at the table as well with a glass of fresh orange juice. The empty plate with some few leftovers in front of him indicated that he had already finished his breakfast before.
"Do you want some eggs and bacon?" Moira asked him, ignoring the teasing remarks around her.
"Just eggs, please. And I'll have some toast."
Realizing that the pan was almost empty, Moira got up and went over to the stove to prepare another helping, and Charles decided to change the topic, though he could not deny feeling somewhat… proud. So what if they had all heard? Awkward as it was, it was nothing to be ashamed of. Quite contrary.
"So, Hank, did you call your neighbor yesterday? Everything fine with your place and your turtle?"
The younger man nodded and looked up at him. "Yeah, all's fine. Leonard is doing good."
"Leonard?" Alex asked. "You named your turtle Leonard?"
Hank's brow twisted slightly. "Um. Yeah."
"Leonard McCoy?" Alex laughed out. "Dude, could you be a bigger geek?"
Now it was Hank who blushed faintly and busied himself with stirring his probably already cold coffee. He shrugged.
"What? Do you have another pet called Kirk and Spock too?"
Hank cleared his throat. "Spock was a goldfish. He died last year."
Raven and Irene now joined in to the chuckles. "It's nothing unusual, though," Irene spoke. "I mean Raven here had two gerbils named Aragorn and Arwen as a teenager. Isn't that right?"
"I did. Arwen bit Aragorn's tail off, though, so I had to separate them."
That caused further laughter, though Charles became slightly restless as he checked his watch. Erik would be back in ten minutes the latest, and he had actually wanted to fill Moira in on everything. He just couldn't make up his mind on whether it was smarter to do it with everyone else present or not.
They continued to chat about pets and childhood fan obsessions (or those of adults as well, since Hank still was a passionate Trekkie), until after Charles had emptied his plate (he would have a second helping when Erik joined them) Moira picked up the topic herself.
"Alright guys, I think you still wanted to tell me something," she started, eyeing Charles expectantly.
"Right," he said, suddenly feeling his throat slightly hoarse. With Alex and Hank finding out by coincidence it had been relatively easy. Actually telling somebody something as unbelievable as what they now all knew was a fact was an entirely different thing.
"Do you want us to leave?" Irene asked, and Charles let his gaze drift to each of them.
"No. I think… unless you want to leave you can stay," he replied, deciding it might actually be helpful to have some backup. Neither of them gave any signs that they wanted to get away, though Hank took out his cellphone and started playing around with it - possibly checking his email or something.
"Right," Charles repeated, not quite knowing how to start. "Right."
"Charles," Moira said calmly but urging him to continue. "Whatever it is, just tell me already, because I don't think I can handle the suspense for much longer."
He nodded, opening his mouth to speak, but no words came out. How on earth was he going to say this?
"Erik's a shark." Unsurprisingly, it was Alex who simply cut to the chase and replied for him after further moments of silence. He gave Charles an apologetic shrug after receiving a rather admonishing glare.
"He's not a shark," Raven cut in. Moira snorted softly at what had to seem like a very obvious correction. She had no idea. "He can transform into one. I think what he is would be commonly called a shape shifter."
"I've been thinking about this," Hank now said, his eyes mostly fixed on the surface of the table. "A shape shifter in folklore isn't exactly bound to changing into only one thing. I'd say he's more of a hybrid creature as you can find in ancient myth. Although most of those legendary figures, like the Minotaur, could not change between human and animal form. I'm… not really sure how to explain this scientifically, but…"
"It doesn't matter," Raven ended for him. "He's a -"
"Okay, okay, very funny," Moira interrupted them, raising one hand and squinting her eyes shut as a disbelieving smile formed on her lips. "Enough of that nonsense. So, what's really the deal with him?"
The others did indeed shut up as she looked straight at Charles, brows raised and a glance so piercing that it was impossible to lie to her. "Charles?"
He let out a helpless chuckle. "Raven and I did find him in the water like I told you. But I left something out. He… Well… Yes, when we pulled him on our boat he had…"
Moira did not draw her gaze from him.
"The lower half of his body was that of a shark," Charles ended quite quickly, only to see Moira throw her hands up and roll her eyes.
"Charles Francis Xavier, if you don't cut the crap this instant and tell me what the hell is going on I swear, I…" She didn't seem exactly sure what she was swearing, breathing in and out with exasperation and rising anger. He had somehow expected a reaction of the sort.
"He just did," Irene said softly, her hand on the table surface sliding towards where Moira was sitting, searching to reach her and briefly patting her lower arm. "I'm sure it sounds like a silly little prank to you, but they're not making this up."
"Nope," Alex added. "I saw it with my own two eyes."
"I don't believe this," Moira sighed and got up from her seat, taking a few steps into the kitchen but turning around on the spot again. "Seriously guys, this isn't funny. Just tell me already what is really up with that guy because -"
"Heeey." Another voice reached them from the open patio door, and as Charles turned around he saw Sean walk in, dressed in only a pair of wet swim trunks and a towel around his shoulders. "Got some coffee? Man, I must still be high," he chuckled as he came closer and reached for an empty cup on the table - the one that was meant for Erik, Charles supposed. "I just thought I saw that Erik dude in the water with a shark tail. Awesome. Man, those brownies really had it in them." He shook his head in amusement and sat down, not bothering that his wet trunks would soak the upholstery.
Moira stared at him. And back at Charles. Hank, Alex, Raven, all of who nodded at her. She sat down quite suddenly.
"So…" she started, her previously rather vehement voice now sounding much weaker. "He… You're not taking the piss out of me here?"
"No, Moira, we're not," Charles replied gently but firmly, giving her a smile that he hoped was calming and reassuring. All he saw from her was her brow twisting further, eyes drifting over the table without focus as she tried to process what she had just learned.
"And you mean he… he can change into something half shark, half human? Like… like a mermaid?"
"He can transform completely. Into a great white shark. That's how Shaw came across him and his family. He was out trophy hunting," Charles explained, ignoring the fact that Sean was sitting right beside them. Somehow he suspected the boy would either simply believe them or think he was, indeed, still on drugs.
"Oh no," Moira said, her befuddlement and shock slowly fading and making room for a look of compassion in her eyes, though she still seemed overwhelmed by the story.
"Who's Shaw?" Sean asked, mouthful of a piece of toast he had grabbed.
"Sean, why are you here?"
"Um…" The boy looked a little startled at Moira's sudden vehemence, and he swallowed down his bite. "We had no food in the fridge, and my roommate was having a party."
"Don't you have parents?"
"Well, yeah, but… they don't like me coming over and raiding the fridge," Sean explained as if that was an appropriate response.
"Of course," Moira groaned. "Well anyway. So Shaw's after Erik because…"
"We don't know exactly," Charles said. "But we suspect that he…" He had to sigh, not really feeling comfortable with letting his thoughts go in that direction, remembering the horrors Erik had told him about. "When he came across Erik and his parents, he first killed Erik's father and then captured him and his mother. He conducted experiments on them. Erik's mother died, but Erik could escape. I think that Shaw wants to resume those experiments, and he may be building that facility to do so. He told me he would make a great sum of money from it, so I suspect… Well, maybe he wants to… I don't know, show-case Erik," he said, shrugging briefly as he saw the disbelief on Moira's features, knowing that she must be thinking the same he had: even someone like Shaw could not get away with such a violation of human rights.
"Heh, I think I know that movie. Was that the one with Tom Hanks… no that was a Mermaid," Sean said.
"I'm really sorry I didn't tell you the whole truth sooner, Moira," Charles said. "But you would never have believed me if I had told you on the phone."
"I'm still finding it hard to believe it now," she replied with another sigh.
"Hey wait, you're not talking about a movie?"
"No, we're not, Sean," Moira said quickly. "What you just saw was no aftermath of a bad trip. But you're not going to tell anyone about this because nobody would believe you anyway. And I would have you fired."
The ginger-haired boy looked up at her, eyes big for a moment. "He's really a shark-maid… mer-shark… man-maiden shark thing? I'm not high?"
"Well, I don't know if you are, but if you haven't smoked anything and since you've only raided my fridge and there are no hash brownies anywhere in my house, no."
Charles was beginning to doubt it had been a good idea to simply continue talking with yet another person present; in fact, that thought had hit him when Moira had warned Sean not to disclose that information. But to his great astonishment Sean only nodded then, lips pursed for a moment as he swayed his head up and down.
"Okay. Wicked."
"Well that's a cool reaction if I've ever seen one," Alex remarked somewhat mockingly as he downed the rest of his orange juice.
"Hey can I have more eggs?" Sean asked, as if he really had just learned about something completely trivial and usual.
"No," Moira snapped, and Charles almost had to chuckle were it not for the fact that he felt a great wave of sympathy for her. She could be quite stern sometimes, but generally Moira was a very kind and generous person. The new information and the situation she had to deal with seemed to stress and even frighten her, judging from the look in her eyes. Luckily, Sean didn't even seem to feel offended. Instead, he just shrugged and helped himself to some cornflakes and milk, starting to eat noisily.
"I'll get out another set of dishes for Erik", Raven said and got up from her seat, obviously already having learned her way around the kitchen.
"I'm going to change," Hank said and got up as well, wearing a pair of sweatpants to his t-shirt as Charles could see now. Alex, who already was wearing nothing but swim shorts and a t-shirt, made to clear the table of things that weren't needed anymore, and Irene excused herself as well, leaving only Moira and Sean at the table with him now.
"So… as I have promised you, he's no criminal and no junkie," Charles tried, hoping to find a sign from her that she wasn't angry with him for dragging her into this business.
She sighed again but gave him a brief smile. "You wouldn't be so infatuated with him if he were."
Charles briefly bit his lower lip, not entirely sure whether the remark had been affectionate or slightly reproachful. When Moira reached over the table to briefly squeeze his hand, however, it became clear there were no hard feelings.
"Of course, from all the people I know you're the one most likely to fall in love with a shark."
Charles chuckled out in relief, sensing the trace of amusement in her words now. "You make that sound slightly perverted."
"Heh, like Troy McLure," Sean grinned and took another spoonful of cereal, crunching it loudly. "So you're gay?"
"Um…" Charles blinked slightly, not having expected the question since it was for one rather personal to ask someone you barely knew and secondly also more or less redundant. "I'm… bisexual, I guess."
"Ah," Sean nodded. "So Moira didn't make you gay?"
"SEAN!!"
While Charles was completely caught by surprise by the rather ridiculous question, Moira seemed mortified, covering her forehead with one hand.
"What the hell is wrong with you, Sean?"
The boy shrugged apologetically and gave Charles a faint grin before focusing on his breakfast again.
"It was just a joke," Moira explained when Charles looked at her quizzically. "Which I shouldn't have made in front of Sean," she added with emphasis.
"Moira, honestly, you…" Even though he knew it could have been nothing but a joke, Charles felt the slight urge to explain himself, to reassure her that this had nothing to do with her. "You're a wonderful, intelligent and beautiful woman. I don't think you could make anyone gay," he said, smiling, and squeezed her had in return.
Moira rolled her eyes and chuckled. "Well, thanks. I was briefly considering to abjure men and become a lesbian after our break-up," she joked the moment Raven came back to the table and sat down.
"So much more fun," she said jokingly.
"Ah, come on, that's not fair," Alex spoke lightly, drying a plate he had just washed with a kitchen towel as he came closer. "Please don't let all pretty women be out of reach for us guys. That would be cruel." The smile on his face was rather charming, typical of him when he was in a good mood, but it made a glow of color appear on Moira's cheeks.
Charles felt a smile lingering on his lips for a good while. He was utterly relieved that the conversation had, in the end, gone as smoothly as possible and that Moira did not seem to be too freaked out or angry with him. All in all, he could call himself a really lucky man to have friends like all of them - even that Sean guy, weird as he was, seemed decent and likeable enough. It was all too easy for him to draw optimism and strength from this knowledge, to enjoy himself despite everything, and to not feel guilty for being happy - happier than he had been in a long time, due to Erik.
The thought made him glance at his watch again, and a small frown formed on his features. Erik had meant to be back ten minutes ago.
"I'm sorry, Sean," he said and looked over to the young man who emptied his cereal bowl. "When you said you saw Erik in the water where was that exactly?"
"A bit further down there," he replied, pointing in the direction of where Erik and Charles had been yesterday, too.
"Did he say anything to you?"
"Nah. I was too far away. Don't even know if he saw me," Sean replied.
"Ah."
Charles could not help the frown lingering on his face, though he wasn't exactly worried. Maybe Erik had just forgotten the time, enjoying himself too much in the water, and with a smile he remembered their little adventure, remembered how amazing it had been to see Erik in the water, in his shark shape…
"I can make something else for him when he's back," Moira said. "We've still got enough left, and it's no hassle."
"Thank you, Moira. You know, I'll go looking for him, though."
As he stepped outside, Charles suddenly had a very odd sense of foreboding, as if his optimistic thoughts just now had been completely unrealistic, and he had to scold and force himself not to paint things black prematurely. Shaking his head to himself, he let out a faint chuckle. He had always been a bit of a fretting nature when it came to the people he cared about the most.
Walking down the beach towards the spot where they had left their things yesterday, he looked around. There weren't many people on the beach this morning. Most of them were probably still at breakfast, or working, or simply hadn't trusted the weather to stay nice. Two kids were playing Frisbee a few yards away in the other direction, an elderly woman walked her dog, and there was one figure in the water somewhere further out, but as Charles squinted in the direction he could recognize long hair and a bright pink bikini top.
He walked on and directed his gaze somewhere further north, one hand shielding his eyes against the sunlight reflecting on the water. And finally, he spotted a little bundle in the sand, the same kind of blue and yellow colored beach towel Erik had taken with him, and Charles smiled. At least he now knew where Erik would be coming back to. He already regretted not having taken his own swim wear and a towel - he could have joined Erik if only for a few minutes - until something made him stop and squint in confusion. The towel lay there on the ground, crumpled and looking wet, but the swim trunks Erik had been wearing were not there or anywhere else to be seen. Had he lost them in the water? He must have taken them off if he had transformed, which, according to Sean he definitely had. Charles bent down to pick the towel up.
Suddenly, he felt like all air was pressed out of his lungs as he stared at the dark, reddish spot on the pale sand, a few dots speckled around the larger on in the middle. Frantically, he felt the towel, ran his fingers across it and looked into his palm, a red smeared stain on his skin.
"Erik," he gasped, his voice hitching in the back of his throat, his heart suddenly thumping painfully in his chest as he looked back onto the water.
"Erik? Erik??!"
~ TBC ~
Chapter 13
A/N:
You're probably hating me now, don't you? I'm sorry... I promise to get the next chapter done quickly so that you don't have to wait too long to find out what's going on.
@ crimsoncrow This was the best I could do ;) To include your suggestion elsewhere wouldn't have fit, so I hope you like the way I put it in, even if it wasn't 100% like you had suggested.