Together

The two of them had always been connected. Jean Grey and Charles Xavier, Charles Xavier and Jean Grey. They were more than father and daughter, they were two halves of a soul. Two halves of a being. Said being often came to them, either one of them, at night. It started when Jean began to live with Charles in the manor. The small nightmares that seemed to attack either one of them. If Charles had a good night's rest, chances are that Jean didn't, and vice versa. 

Charles didn't mind, though. He loved and cared for Jean as if she was his own; raising her to be respectful and kind, although able to stand up for herself and others. Naturally Jean was quite timid, especially as her powers grew and became harder to control, but Charles was there. He was always there. Seemingly, he was, and apparently he was everywhere. 

The day Jean began living with him, Charles went to sleep with a raging headache. By no means was it her fault; his powers had been overwhelming, more overwhelming than they usually were. He didn't let it show and when she was finally tucked into bed he let his power roam free, and it felt.. stronger. Not amplified, but naturally stronger. He heard more voices than normal, more thoughts and memories and pain.

It wasn't until Apocalypse used Cerebro through him that he felt as powerful as he did then. Whatever power had taken control of his powers the day he brought Jean home had gone to rest, and while he still felt that small hum of power it was never as strong as that night. Until Apocalypse. But only this time it felt.. wrong. The power that took hold of him felt negative and cold, like it was tearing his soul apart. He had Alex destroy Cerebro, and when he woke up he was on a mountain of sorts with Apocalypse and his horsemen. Unfortunately, one of them was familiar. Erik Lensherr. He remembered when he first met Erik and he remembered thinking they’d be together forever. He was wrong. 

The next thing he knew, he was laying down in a room. His memories were a blur but he knew he was inside of Apocalypse’s head now. He was trying to make him feel how he felt, to feel the pain of others against his will. It didn’t go as planned as he was beaten to the floor. He didn’t know what happened or how, all he knows is that he felt so overwhelmed. He felt hot and he felt. Powerful. He felt powerful.

Don’t get him wrong; he felt powerful ever since the voices began as a child. But this was different. He could tell he wasn't the only one to have felt hot, as he told Jean to unleash her power it literally blew Apocalypse back, as he stood his injuries began healing. He did the same as Jean had done. He let go. He tore Apocalypse’s mentalliy away as Jean tore his physical body away. He tore his eyes open and stood– he stood– something he thought to be impossible for him to ever do again, and he yelled. With joined hands he and Jean created an ember of power, connected as one soul, two halves of an all cosmic being. Together they destroyed Apocalypse with the help of the others. Only after the mutant was dead did it become clear that it was hard to reign in whatever power had taken hold of Jean and Charles. 

With a pained cry she let go of his hand, falling limp and being caught by Kurt before hitting the floor. Charles stayed in the air as the inferno of life seemed to consume him, and he yelled louder. He touched down to the floor softly, somehow holding himself up on his legs before yelling again and falling to be seated on the floor, the ground shaking as flames began to burst from around him. 

Worriedly the others tried to reach him, only to be held in place by Erik as he walked towards a now sobbing Charles carefully. Charles was leaned forward, sitting on his legs and shielding his head as he trembled. Gingerly he reached out to touch him only to pull his hand back with a hiss of pain. Charles only shook with more sobs as he sat up to stare at Erik; his curious blue eyes now twin embers of flowing lava. He spoke, voice trembling and cracking with fear. With the three words muttered, Erik felt his heart shatter. 

“Please kill me.”

Erik had lost too much, and if he hesitated before lifting the sharpest piece of metal rebar, no one blamed him. He ignored how a tear escaped from his eye as he shot the rebar towards Charles, tuning out the piercing scream Charles let out. Charles tried to say it wasn’t enough, that he needed to be dead for the ember to die out as blood escaped from his mouth. Erik complied painfully, impaling Charles with more pieces of metal until his shirt was stained with blood and the ember began to die, revealing the baby blue eyes that Erik had loved and lost one too many times. Charles was dead and softly, Erik walked over to him and removed the pieces of metal slowly, picking up the limp body and levitating until he stood inside the demolished house Charles’ team had hidden in. He laid the body down so they could mourn before letting himself crumple to the ground with a silent sob. He felt arms around him as Raven held onto him tightly. The two of them comforted each other for a moment before Hank mumbled something about finding them a jet or something to return home with.

The next time he let himself feel something was when he was sitting in the manor, staring at the metal autopsy table that Charles’ dead body was laid on with a soft white sheet hiding him from view. Numbly he walked over to the sheet, folding it down to expose Charles’ face. He looked peaceful. It was eerie to see the man so calm and relaxed; so long ago when they’d share a hotel room while recruiting, he didn’t even look this relaxed in his sleep. Erik felt tears prick the corner of his eyes as he cupped Charles’ face, and was thoroughly shocked when his hand met warm flesh, and hesitantly he reached and removed the sheet from on top of Charles. 

When he saw the barely noticeable rise and fall of Charles’ chest, noticing the wounds he had were now healed over, Erik called for Hank. He didn’t want to get his hopes up but when he was told Charles was in fact alive he couldn’t help but pull Raven into a joy filled hug as he and the small group began to cry. Only this time it was tears of joy and relief and disbelief. Hank had hooked Charles up to an IV and moved him to a hospital bed of sorts, connected to all sorts of monitors. They visited him one at a time, Raven stayed for at least 3 hours, Jean for 2. Erik hadn’t moved from his seat in the hallway.

When he was finally able to visit Charles, the two of them seemed exhausted, Charles more so. They spoke together for hours, laughing at small jokes that turned to small smiles and the two of them staring at each other as they basked in the comfort of each other’s presence. 

Charles had explained that whatever had taken hold of him is what healed him and brought him back. He even thanked Erik for killing him, fearing what would have happened if Erik refused. Erik kissed him. It was a shocking but welcomed movement, before Erik broke the kiss and laid his head on Charles’ chest and began to cry again, and Charles didn’t need to use his telepathy to tell that the other was scared. He comforted him as best as he could until Erik gained composure and kissed Charles again, this time less messy and gentler. The kiss was returned and Charles stared at him and projected any positive emotion he felt towards Erik; love, passion, thankfulness, safety. 

Erik slept in his room that night, too scared that he’d lose his love again after he had just got him back after the loss of his wife and daughter. He couldn’t bear that thought. He had lost him on the beach all those years ago and finally fell in love again years later, and when he saw Charles again he knew he never fell out of love with the blue eyed man, even finding the similarities between Charles and his now late wife. Charles wasn’t a rebound, nor was his wife, he loved them both equally. But he had to move on, and it never hurt to rekindle a bond with someone that he had wronged and had wronged him back out of pain.

The two would protect each other, protect the children, and protect and fight for mutants together.

Together.