Daughter of Steel

Chapter Eleven

It takes me about a week before I can finally get Charles on his own to discuss Wanda; I corner him in his office under the pretense of asking for 'extra homework'. And to be honest, if he believes that extra homework is something I would actually ask for, then that's on him.

In the end though, the conversation is more disappointing than I built it up to be in my head. Yes, Wanda is my half-sister (somehow my dad managed to "visit" Peter's mum when I was younger) and yes they believe she is a mutant as well, although she doesn't appear to exhibit any signs yet.  Ultimately though, Charles was more concerned about the fact that me and peter snuck off campus without anyone noticing. God, that man can lecture, droning on and on about various rules and regulations, telling me how dangerous it was to leave without a tutor, what could've happened. In the end I lose my temper.

"Ok, ok! I get it, something bad could've happened! But nothing did, Charles, everything was fine!"
"But don't you see, Abi, you and Peter are so young, so naive. You have no idea what the world holds for people like us, people like you especially because of who your father is."

I mull this over for a moment. My father is respected yes, but feared by most. Surely that means that, rightly or wrongly, people are more likely to treat me with care?

"I thought you were the one who was like "yay, humans!!", Charles?" I spit out, sarcasm practically dripping from my voice.
"And look what happened to you, you ended up with a bullet in your spine!"
It's at this point that Charles goes quiet and I realise I have taken it too far. I wince, realising the severity of my words.

"Listen", I sigh, "I didn't mean that. I'm sorry. But don't you think, Charles, that wrapping us up in cotton wool might not the best thing for us? That we need to integrate into society?" And he just looks at me with those sad, weary eyes of his. 

"Abigail, think about it; your mother was a mutant-"
"Yeah, and she was peaceful, and she was kind!"
"Until humans perceived her as not. And then they killed her." Charles' voice falls blankly into the quiet of the room. He turns to the window, staring out onto the campus. It's a perfect autumn day outside, the kind that's only ever seen on TV or in university brochures. Clusters of kids are scattered around; sitting under trees that seem to glow with orange leaves, walking around the green, studying at picnic benches. It's a scene that wouldn't look out of place at any other school-- if it wasn't for a few slight details. There's kids flying, teleporting, hell, there's even one hanging from a tree with hands that span over the branches. It's all very mutant.

"Abigail....Abi!"
I realise that Charles has been trying to get my attention for the last minute, and, actual words failing, has resorted to telepathy.

"Sorry, sorry," I reply, pulling my eyes away from the window. "What were you saying?"
"Honestly, Abigail, your attention span baffles me. No wonder I've had complaints from your tutors."
"I know, I know," I grin. "I'm a menace."

"You truly are," Charles replies, though he is smiling back as well. "And, whilst I have you here, there's something I'd like to talk to you about."

"Oh yeah," I say, attempting to keep my tone casual. I never read Charles mind, as a rule, but right now the urge is overwhelming.

"Yes. I was wondering if there's any of your classmates that you found particularly gifted, their mutations stronger than others?"

"Um, well there's Peter, obviously," I say, racking my brains. "And my friend Robyn, she seems to have a grip on her mutation pretty well. Why?"

"I'm thinking of putting together a group of gifted students, ones who can be trusted to handle situations that others can't, who can work as a team to task-solve."

My skin begins to prickle with excitement. "Like the X-Men? You want me and my friends to be the new X-Men?"
"Absolutely not," Charles replies. "This would be a much lesser version of anything the X-Men do, a trial run, if you will. There would be much less responsibility involved."

"But you still want us to have a little responsibility?" I say, a smile lifting the corners of my face.

"Yes, I suppose I do. Think of it as a test; I want to see how well you can cope under the pressure."

"Oh, we'll cope alright," I say, as my mind begins to race with possibilities. "I'm sure of it."

Hey hey guys! I uhhhhhhh decided to randomly come back and update this because X-Men has recently become one of my hyperfixations (turns out I'm autistic lmao). I've also managed to get two degrees in creative writing since going on hiatus ahahaah. I hope you continue this but we'll see. Hope everyone has had a good seven years! <3