Memories

Chapter Twenty-Two

"Erik, what are we doing here?" Emma stood in the kitchen, her hands on her hips with a disapproving scowl on her face. She'd just caught him as the three small children ran out of the room, giggling and full of energy after enjoying rather large bowls of ice cream with the feared Magneto.

She was watching her and Erik's dream die as she noted the joy within his eyes as he watched the children run from the room.

"We're joining Charles's group," Erik replied, steel in his voice that only was there when he was exceptionally stubborn about something. Emma wanted to scream at him; she wondered if Charles 'disappearing', or if the twins disappearing, would cause Erik to go back to their true cause?

Was there a way for Emma to pull Erik away from this senseless game of pretend?

Erik would never be a part of Charles's family again, and the twins would only accept Erik as their father until they learned what he had done. Charles would poison the twins with thoughts of world peace and love, and the twins would learn to disapprove of Erik's actions. Erik would not be a man to admire in the twins' eyes any longer.

This life Erik was pretending he could have would be poisoned forever; it would shrivel and die, and Erik would be once again left a broken man.

Dreams are like glass; they are fragile, and when they break and crumple, they can cut and scar the mightiest of people.

"Erik, see sense! These people do not see the world like you and I do- like our group does. If you stay here, you can never kill again. Can you do that? Can you forgo all of our dreams, our aspirations for mutantkind?" Emma asked, frustration and rage building within her at Magneto's sentimentality.

Caring is not an advantage.

"Emma, I have gone almost two years now without Charles by my side. It has been nearly unbearable, and now to know I have hurt him so seriously- paralyzed him for the rest of his life- I don't think I can ever part with him. Besides, knowing that I have children, I could never leave them. Family is the one thing that you must hold onto. Family lasts forever," Erik replied, his voice holding a concerned quality.

He was concerned for Emma.

"Will family last once they know you're a murderer?" Emma asked. At his disdainful, distasteful look, Emma added, "Despite all your good intentions, you still have killed people. You've killed one man in cold blood, while your love still was connected to the man. You're single-minded behavior will never allow for a family to flourish. And who's to say that Charles will forgive you? Accept you into his arms and his bed once more?"

Emma was casting stones that had plagued him long before now, and they still bruised Erik's confidence and his willpower.

"Charles is forgiving. He is also not the type of man to ruin my relationship with my children." Erik ignored his own insecurities for now. Emma scoffed, feeling that Erik believed too much of this man he held in such high regard. "Charles would also protect those children at all costs, no matter what anyone else thought. If he thought you were a threat, even for a moment, you would never see your precious twins again. If you really want to, we can take them with us, but we shouldn't stay here," Emma advised, a last ditch effort to get Erik out of Charles's cleansing reach.

"I won't uproot my children like that. Their home is here, and so is ours now," Erik replied fiercely, an end to the discussion. Emma sighed and left the room, giving up on her hopes of reacquiring her one purpose. Emma was now a meaningless, lost telepath, stuck in a realm that welcomed her, but did not accept her.

Emma could feel every presence- except Erik- in the house and how they felt. Riptide and Azazel were uncomfortable and uneasy, not sure where they belonged. Angel was hiding away in her room, afraid of confronting the boys- especially Banshee. Mystique was working out non-stop, also afraid of talking to the ones she'd betrayed.

Charles's team was feeling similar frustrations. Darwin was uncertain and protective of his friends. Alex felt rage and distrust, and Scott was holding a deep grudge, not trusting any of them since his brother didn't. Sean felt a mixture of pain, regret, and betrayal. Beast was feeling shy and betrayed, but longing as well.

Wolverine was practically sharpening his claws, Ororo was worried about losing control again, and Jean was uncertain and insecure of herself. Rogue, Emma felt, was hiding something, but the girl was good at hiding her mind. Bobby was unsure and was trying to decide how he felt about Erik's group.

The only people that seemed happy or even satisfied with this arrangement was Erik, Charles, the twins, and Kitty. Five people, verses the other fifteen people in the household.

Emma debated on raiding Charles's mind, just to view Erik's and Charles's moments. She wanted to know what was so special between them that Erik would give up their ideals, their freedom. Emma could even persuade Charles to kick them all out; Erik would be forced to leave, to take up their cause again.

Emma's life would be back to normal.

"You're interesting, you know that?" The White Queen heard a deep, gruff, masculine voice behind her, and she turned to see the clawed one standing before her, his arms crossed and his eyes analyzing her. Emma felt a pull to this man, Wolverine, but had decided upon meeting him that it would not be a good idea to draw his attention.

Now, it seemed, she had his attention anyway.

"How am I interesting?" She asked, an eyebrow raised at the man. Logan smirked, uncrossed his arms and circled her. "You act all regal. You walk with grace, careless. You act vacant, but you seems troubled. I can sense that sorta thing," Logan replied, his voice husky and deep.

"Oh? And I suppose that I should be flattered by your observations?" Emma replied coyly, an amused smirk on her face. "You don't have to be," Logan replied, still circling her. Emma's eyes followed him as far as she could before he disappeared behind her back, and her eyes found him again as he came to the front of her.

Finally, he stopped in front of her, and they gazed into each other's eyes. Then, Logan turned and walked away from the White Queen, leaving her standing there, a bit confused and disappointed. Emma turned and continued her trek down the hallway, returning to her room to isolate herself.

But when you're a telepath, you are never truly isolated.