If Yesterday Was Tomorrow [ X-Men ]

Chapter Twenty-Three

It was warm outside. May had slowly settled in, greeting all with sunlight and warmth. They could finally leave the coats to opt for light jackets. Victor and Azazel made no expression to the rule and had ditched heavy clothes as well. It was too nice outside, even if it was still morning.

However, they were running out of time. They had not managed to find Mystique yet. They'd found so many dead-ends, they'd lost months of time and Mystique was still as far as in the beginning. Months had flown by at light speed. They'd tried everything and failed. They'd tried almost everything.

"We don't have a choice, Azazel," slowly said Victor, throwing his coffee cup into the trash.

Azazel tsked and crossed his arms.

"We have to go there, there's no other way to find Mystique," Victor continued, "We've been searching for months. Time is running out. We have to go."

"I know, Victor, I know!" exclaimed Azazel angrily. "I just don't want to go to the other only to have him to slam the door on us! After what we've done..."

Victor grimaced.

"I know," he said, "But if he does so, then we'll simply continue searching, alright? We'll figure it out. We just have to give him a chance."

"Fine."

Azazel's tone was hard and mean, but Victor knew that he couldn't help it. They'd both been stressed out for the last few months, as not only had they not found Mystique of any trail leading to her whatsoever, but Emma was gone as well. She never came back, and they were not able to find her either. Stress and anxiety were things that just kept haunting them.

Azazel threw out his own coffee cup and grabbed Victor's arm without further arguments. They were enveloped in the familiar red smoke. In a second, they had teleported miles away.

They appeared in front of a delicately forged iron gate. Vegetation surrounded it freely, adding a touch of softness to the hardness of the dark metal. A golden plate indicated that the mansion they could see in the distance was "Xavier's School for the Gifted".

Victor only had an instant to appreciate the peace and quiet of the place before Azazel teleported them on the property. Azazel let go of Victor, straightening his dark uniform. Victor sent a glance over his shoulder, noticing the gate now behind them.

"Come on, let's get this over with," said Azazel with obvious displeasure. Victor shrugged and followed the stone path to the school, Azazel at his side. They both fell into silence as they got closer to the mansion. It was simply a beautiful place. The trees had grown strong and the vegetation was luxuriant without quite invading the buildings or the fountains spread out around campus. Victor found it crazy that Xavier had lived there all his youth.

Azazel seemed to be lost in contemplation of the baseball court that was laid out beside the mansion. Victor smiled. Xavier seemed to have done a great job renovating the estate for it to be suitable for a school. Stone and wooden benches were placed strategically by the numerous tentacular stone paths crawling around campus.

But Victor and Azazel weren't there for the school. They had come hoping that Xavier would listen to their request in order to find Raven once and for all. Azazel was obviously expecting to be thrown out or attacked the very moment they reached the school, but Victor a speck of hope. After all, Raven was Charles' sister. He was not expecting to be forgiven for what he'd done, but he hoped that Xavier would accept helping them this one time. It was their last resort. Their last try before giving up. A last idea that might very well backfire.