The fact that everyone had fit into one car was a miracle. However, Lily didn't trust literally anyone to drive so she drove, somehow convincing Charles she was competent enough to do so. Turned out, Lily was actually a phenomenal driver. When they arrived at the gate, Erik took care of the guards by slamming them against the walls before lifting the barrier.
"So much for subtlety" Lily muttered as she drove forward. "That was subtle" Erik replied and Lily just looked at him. She was seriously starting to question who thought it was a good idea to put them both in the front. Together. The two people who despised each other the most.
It's like they had a death wish.
Lily parked the car and they all rushed in, Lily and Logan leading the charge since they were the two most determined people in the group. When they rounded the corner, a woman with glasses noticed them and immediately tried to stop them.
"Sorry, you're not allowed in here" she tried to tell them. "There's a small kitten running around begging for food" Lily placed two fingers on her temple and the woman soon began chasing around an invisible cat. "Seriously?" Logan asked, an amused smile on his face. "I'm depressed, leave me alone" she retorted as they rushed up the stairs.
Men started barrelling into the group, rushing away in a panic and Lily shared a look with Logan before they followed where the crowd of men were coming from. Lily skidded to a stop as she looked at the scene in front of her:
Raven was crouched on the table, gun pointed directly at Trask.
"Raven" Charles called out and Raven froze. She looked up, seeing Charles, Lily, Hank and Erik all standing together and nostalgia hit her like a train. The moment was broken when Stryker, who had been laid on the floor, pulled up a taser and shot it at her.
The blue woman began shaking in pain, her body falling onto the table. Erik wasted no time in pulling the metal prongs out of her body and forcing them into Stryker's throat. Lily rushed forwards and kicked the gun away from the man before putting him to sleep.
When she turned back around, her eyes blazed with fury when she saw Erik pointing a gun at Raven. "Erik?" Raven questioned, confusion in her eyes. "Erik, what are you doing?" Charles demanded, turning around to see.
"Securing our future. Forgive me, Mystique. As long as you're out there, we'll never be safe" Erik replied solemnly. Lily quickly grabbed the gun that was on the floor next to her and pointed it at the man. "You don't know how to use that" Erik challenged.
"Try me" Lily snarled, cocking the gun as her finger rested on the trigger. "It's-my god. It's a metal gun" Erik rolled his eyes and Lily smirked. "I know" she said before flipping the gun around and hitting him over the head with the handle, kicking his legs out and sending him crashing to the floor.
"Raven, run!" Lily yelled, pinning the man to the floor. She could hear running footsteps along the table as Lily controlled Erik's powers, stopping him from raising the gun. She did not, however, predict that he would punch her in the face.
She fell to the side, clutching her jaw and Erik rose to his feet, moving to rush towards the window Raven had just jumped out of. But, Lily was faster.
She got to her feet and ran at the man just as he reached the end of the table, grabbing his arm and spinning him round, punching him in the face. He recovered quickly and punched her in the stomach. She hunched over in pain and Erik grabbed the side of her head, slamming it into the table and knocking her out.
At the other end of the table, Charles was slowly getting to his feet, Stryker was escaping and Logan was having a moment on the floor. After a while, Logan got to his feet, confused for a moment. "Professor?" Logan frowned. "What happened to you?" Charles asked him, looking him over.
"I just saw someone who's gonna bring me a lot of pain someday" Logan admitted, standing up straight. "Where's Raven?" he asked, regaining his composure. "Gone" Charles replied before looking around the room for his sister.
His eyebrows raised when he heard a groan from the opposite end of the table and fingers clasped over the edge, pulling themselves up to reveal a bleeding Lily. "Oh, I'm gonna fucking kill him" Lily groaned, pressing a hand to her head.
"You alright?" Logan asked. "What do you think?" Lily snapped, the blood seeping back into her head. "Alright, we gotta go" Lily stumbled her way towards the two men, a hand still pressed to her head and Charles grabbed her arm, walking out with her.
~
Apparently there wasn't enough fuel to fly back to America then and there so they stayed the night in Paris. The Xavier sibling shared a room as Hank and Logan shared a room. Lily was sitting on the bed, gazing up at the ceiling while trying to close the gash on her head when Charles finally came out of the bathroom, his hair slightly damp.
"And you used to complain about me" Lily teased and Charles snorted, shutting the bathroom door and flopping down onto the bed. "It was nice being here" Charles spoke. "Are you forgetting the part where our former best friend just tried to murder our sister?" Lily raised an eyebrow and Charles just looked at her.
"I meant being here with you" he mumbled and she sighed. "Charles, we've spent the past decade together" Lily said. "No, we haven't" Charles shook his head, sitting up to look at her. "I mean, we've been there physically but mentally and emotionally, I've been gone" Charles continued.
"And I wish I could go back and fix it. I wish I could go back and see all the damage I've done to you and just fix it" Charles said. "It's okay, I'm fine" Lily dismissed. "No. You aren't. You are breaking at the seams and there is nothing I can do to help" Charles sighed.
"Actually, there is something you can do" Lily spoke after a few moments. Charles looked up instantly, eyes flitting around her face. "You can stitch up my head" she said and Charles scoffed out a laugh before grabbing the small first aid kit Hank had given them from the plane.
He flicked the light on, causing the woman to squint as Charles sat cross-legged in front of her. He grabbed an anti-septic wipe and cleaned her wound, earning a wince from her. "Sorry" he muttered before grabbing what he needed.
He slowly stitched her gash up, apologising softly every time she winced and she just looked at him the whole time. "There" he smiled as he finished the last stitch but frowned when he saw the look on her face. "Are you okay?" he asked. "Can you promise me something?" she said after a moment, looking down. "Anything" Charles nodded.
"Just...be here. With me. And I mean it, if you go back to how you were once this is all over...I won't survive that, Charles" Lily said and Charles nodded.
"I'm here. And I'm not going anywhere" Charles said softly and the moon broke out from behind the clouds, illuminating the tears that glistened in her eyes. "Don't ever leave me again. Please" Lily begged and Charles' features softened before he pulled Lily into a hug.
The first real hug they had shared in years.
"You've taken care of me for the past ten years. Let me take care of you" Charles whispered into her hair and she sobbed into his shirt. They stayed like that for what felt like hours until Lily's sobs finally ceased as she cried herself into a much needed sleep.
And for the first time since that day in 1962, Lily Xavier slept through the night peacefully.
YOU ARE READING
The Puppeteer - X-Men
FanfictionLily Anderson had spent practically her entire life an experiment. Taken from her family at a young age by an organisation, it took her six years to escape. An experiment gone wrong gifted her with a new appearance and a new ability, not that she w...
