Until We Get It Right

Focus

The car rolled up to the tarmack twenty minutes later, and Hera stood quick as lightning. Everything had gone well, and the boys were just as eager to get back to her as she was to have them back. More than anything, Charles was eager to see the reaction his friend would have to Erik's return. The last time she saw him had been a disaster, and this was certain to be emotionally charged, to say the least.

The second they parked, Charles was out of the car and practically sprinted over to Hera. The car ride had been agony, and he wanted to be far away from Erik. Hera took him in her arms and hugged him tightly. She knew it couldn't have been an easy time, and he needed a chance to breathe properly.

"You're alright, you'll be okay, just breathe." Hera whispered to him, making eye contact with Logan over Charles's shoulder. Logan gave her a nod, letting her know that everything had gone alright. When she finally took a step back from the hug, she looked at Charles with a searching expression.

"Are you going to be alright if I go deal with the situation?" She asked. He gave her a nod, and she smiled warmly. "Good. When I've finished, you should go get settled in the plane."

She hurried over to Logan and placed a hand on his bicep. "Wait here for a moment. I need to deal with something, and I'll be right back." She said quietly. He gave her a nod, confused but agreeing nonetheless.

She turned her attention to the last figure stepping out of the car, and her jaw tensed. Erik. She stormed over to him and didn't give him a chance to even fully register her presence before swinging on him. Her fist connected with his cheek, and he hit the ground with a thud.

"You! You think for one second you're gonna come back in here and be welcomed, you reevaluate. You're here to serve a purpose. Then if, and ONLY if Charles decides he wants you around, you will be under lock and fucking key until he decides you can be trusted otherwise." She said, fuming at the man. She leaned down and kneeled beside him, dropping her voice to a low murmur. "Furthermore, if you say one thing to Charles that upsets him or otherwise disturbs his already fragile state of mind having you around, I will stab you and let you suffer, my pain be damned."

Erik looked at Hera, and for the third time since he had met her, he was frightened of what she was capable of. He gave her a silent nod and watched as she spun up and reapproached Logan.

"Sorry about that." She said, a bit embarrassed about him seeing her in such an unflattering situation. Her hands began to flail around as she tried to expand on the situation.  "I know that seemed like a lot, but he deserved it. After the last time I saw him-"

He grabbed her hands in his own and gently held them to his chest to keep her steady and centered. "Hey, hey. You don't need to explain it to me. I knew him in the future, and trust me when I say that I get it. Can't say I'm not surprised that you're the one who laid his ass out, but I'm impressed, nonetheless." He chuckled.

She sighed in relief as he spoke, her brain finally slowing down enough to process the fact that he was holding her hands against him. She leaned her forehead to his chest and focused on her breathing.

"Thank you." She breathed out.

"No need to thank me. I just figured you have enough to deal with right now without me judging you being added to it. Besides, you're probably a saint compared to the shit I've done."

She let out a quiet snort and looked up at him. "Nah. I'm not a saint. I'm just someone who's really tired of watching the people I love hurt. And if I have to cause some pain of my own to fix that, I will."

"You and I are a lot alike. The best at what we do, but what we do isn't very nice sometimes." He said quietly.

"That sounds like you've practiced saying that a time or two." She chuckled.