Taming the Wild

When You Don't Know What To Say, Talk

"Oh, Erik! Raven's alive! She's alive!" Charles was beyond himself with joy. Months of fruitless searching and finally there was light in the end of the tunnel! "Now all I have to do is find her." he said, his smile only faltering a little as he realized that this would not be an easy task.

Mystique was, as Charles was informed, a fugitive - a mutant hero wanted by the law as if she was a common bandit. No doubt that too was Shaw's doing. The man's influence was quite beyond limits, as it seemed. Charles was deeply upset about yet another show of injustice.

However, things were so much clearer in Charles' head now. "He wants me in order to get to her." the teacher said, more to himself than to his friend. "He doesn't need me just for my mutation, he thinks he'd get to my sister if he had me." he closed his eyes, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Raven broke out of his camps and secret laboratories, she knows exactly what's going on in there and dragged a bunch of other mutants out with her. She's trouble to him. She knows too much. She could expose him if she gathers enough proof."

"Don't forget she's still actively fighting against him, sabotaging him and others like him." Erik supplied. "So she's an even bigger problem to him now. No wonder he came here personally to get you!"

"I won't allow him to hurt my sister." Charles said determinedly "If only there was a fast way for me to warn her..."

"I may know where she is." Erik pulled him out of his thoughts.

Charles looked up at him confused. "You do? How? I thought she was hiding, never in one place for too long."

"Yes, she is but not long after she brought the kids back home to me she returned to give me an address." Erik explained quietly as if afraid someone might hear them. "She said should I ever need her, I could write to Angel Salvatore on this address and she'll be notified."

"So... this is it? We can just write to this Angel Salvatore person and Raven will eventually come to me on her own?" Charles asked, not believing that it could be this easy.

Erik smiled. "So it seems."

Charles smiled brightly and wrapped his good arm around his friend. "Thank you, Erik! Thank you so much!"

Erik's hands sheepishly found their way around Charles to hug him back. "It's really nothing. Things just happened that way. It was a coincidence." he mumbled as Charles released him from the embrace and looked up at him, beaming.

"There are no coincidences, Erik." the schoolteacher said softly.

It must've been really stuffy in the room, Charles thought, because Erik's cheeks were flushed red. Charles, however, didn't notice any change in the temperature though because he was too excited and happy to finally have a huge breakthrough in his search for Raven!

Erik was gazing at him with this strange but warm gleam in his eyes that Charles really enjoyed even though he wasn't quite sure of its meaning.

"What is it?" Charles asked still smiling at the taller man

Erik opened his mouth as if to say something when the clock struck 2 in the morning and Erik shifted awkwardly, breaking eye contact with Charles.

"It's late." the blacksmith said "We should get some rest before it's time to wake up again."

"Oh, yes, indeed." Charles replied with a nod, feeling completely unjustified and unreasonable disappointment at the prospect of going to bed instead of staying up with Erik. "It really is late."

"You take the bed, I'll take the couch." Erik continued "Good night, Charles." his smile was different now, stiffer as if he was forcing it.

"Good night..." Charles replied quietly, watching Erik retrieving to the living room before going in the other direction himself.