CATACLYSM || X-Men

4| bring it on home to me

Richmond, Virginia, 1962

Rose hadn't expected the hospitality she was shown. The group of mutants were given rooms to stay in the accommodation quarter, just a few corridors down from the file room; something Rose felt was a test, though she couldn't confirm it.

    It was easy for her to relax in the room closest to the file storage. She had a tall window with a wide sill, perfect space to fit and finish her novel. She couldn't remember the last time she had a room equipped so accurately for the time, and the hum of energy in the walls and through the cables calmed her after the hectic thirty hours she was finished with. Just the day before she was eating with Logan, and now, she was with people who should not have felt as comfortable around her as they did. She had power they couldn't imagine, and yet they trusted her. Or at least one of them was making an effort.

    "Hi," looking up from her book, Rose glanced to the door to see Raven standing with two cups in her hand, hot enough to release wisps of steam into the air. "I uh— I made some tea, and I was wondering if you would like to talk?"

    The question surprised Rose, but she closed her book and smiled at the girl anyway, getting off from her seat. "Come on in."

    Raven smiled, taking a seat in the chair by the window, as Rose sat on the bed. "Charles said you drink coffee, but I thought you might want to sleep, so I just brought you tea from their break room—"

    "Tea is great. Thank you, Raven," she smiled, accepting the mug and breathing in the lemon scent. The warmth spread through her body, the small comfort settling into her bones.

    "I just wanted to talk, because I haven't met another mutant, other than Charles, and not a girl, anyway," Raven chuckled a little nervously, suddenly realising how odd she sounded, but Rose's smile put her at ease. "So, yeah, I just—"

    "Moira's not here, and I'm definitely not CIA, this is a safe space, love. I'm pretty much a steel trap," she chuckled, her words managing to put the girl at ease. The name was so familiar from Charles, but Raven was surprised to hear it from Rose, whose accent suggested a mother tongue different from english.

    "I just thought girls should stick together," Raven shrugged, feeling embarrassed for her need to bond with another girl who understood what it was like to be a mutant.

    "Charles doesn't strike me as a very feminine man," the woman chuckled, seeing through Raven's hesitation.

    "Oh, no, definitely not," Raven laughed, Rose's words putting her at ease.

    The two women got to know their backgrounds, and especially their male companions, inspiring a lot of laughter between them. While Rose and Erik's friendship wasn't the brightest of connections, Raven had a lot of stories about Charles that made up for it. Rose had plenty of accounts about her own lives to add to the pile, which resulted in the two giggling and laughing through the night, long after they emptied their cups.

    Raven was happy to find that Rose had a talent for making her relax in her company. In exchange, Rose finally felt that she wasn't alone as she had made herself to believe in the last few decades. While pessimistic about the duration of their friendship, it was nice to do something good that was on a smaller level than bringing down an anti-semitic leader. Simple pleasures, she observed, were just as important.

    Erik walked past their room first, stopping by the door and watching as Rose seemed carefree for once. Her smile was something he hadn't seen since he first ate after they managed to escape the camp. It was a rare occurrence, one he had to treasure when he saw it.