driftfleet | (no subject)

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(no subject)

Who: Erik, Charles, Hank and Raven
Broadcast: nah
Action: the Blameless. warning for injury treatment, probably.
When: June 7th, shortly after this

[This is the second time in the span of seven days that Erik has had to pilot a shuttle while his vision isn't a hundred percent. It's almost a pattern, he thinks blearily to himself. Different causes, though. As the shuttle docks with the Blameless, he can't help but blow out a breath.

First step done. Now to get out.]

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I tried a lot of things, I'm afraid. None of them quite worked the way I wanted them to.

[Erik turns his hand in order to lace his fingers with Charles's.]

I should have gone harder. He took me by surprise.

[ Charles shakes his head lightly. ]

You're all right. And hopefully, he's all right. That's good enough.

[There's a skeptical look on his face, a bit hard-edged.] He just assaulted the both of us.

He wasn't there.

[ He looks up at the ceiling. White walls. Russia. Daybreak. ] He was buried so deep he couldn't stop screaming.

[Silence fills the space between them momentarily while Erik takes that in. "He wasn't there." It would tally with the look Erik had seen the man's eyes as he relentlessly bore down on him, didn't respond to anything he said. He thinks of Nyssa's game, where the Cats were hollowed out and puppeted around to maim, to injure, to kill. He thinks of the Bone Witch's game, so long ago. Where that dark shadow inside him was brought to life, causing him to murder anyone in his path.

Even so. He'd been careless, lured into complacency by the lack of danger on these ships so far. The fact that it was Winter had also made him hesitate, and it's been proven time and time again that he shouldn't fall into that kind of trap.]

[ Charles can't hear all of Erik's thoughts, but he knows that look in his eyes. Softly, he tries to bring his attention back. ]

Erik.

[His gaze is drawn back, and he holds Charles's look without flinching.]

You went looking, didn't you.

[ He breathes out, trying to keep himself calm. ]

Not at the start. It was only when I made contact that I realized what was wrong.

Which was? [Charles hasn't been clear yet, and Erik needs to know. He has to know what the threat is, in case it happens again. Otherwise, the threat remains just 'Winter', and that's not acceptable when they share living space.]

[ Charles goes quiet. ]

During . . . During World War II, he was captured. Brainwashed. Those protocols are active in his mind. I . . . I think what the Atroma did was activate a mission to -- [ He swallows. All those memories were swimming in the forefront of his mind. ] -- eliminate everything in his path.

[Erik's lips thin into a line. He doesn't like the way it echoes with his own experiences, different though they are. He wasn't trained that way, but he was still a product of what was done to him. The mental scars from such a thing are almost impossible to erase.]

"Activate" him ... so this could happen again?

[ His lips press tightly, white from the pressure. ]

I won't let it happen again. I won't.

[Erik tightens his grip on Charles's hand slightly, reminding him where he is. He keeps his voice low and calm, so as not to alert Hank and Raven to what they're discussing.]

Charles. You didn't get out of this unscathed. You can't charge straight back into it.

[ His voice is thick with tears. ]

I can't leave him there.

[Letting go of Charles's hand, he brings his own up to the other man's face, covering his eyes gently. His voice gets softer, by degrees.]

I know you won't. But you need to recover first.

[ He does. Charles knows this, logically. He can't do anything like this, with foreign thoughts buzzing about in his head. With a shuddering breath, he calms himself. He reaches out to lay his hand on Erik's hand. ]

[Charles always lets his sympathies get the better of him, he knows. They can't afford that right now.]

Come up with a plan, if you must. For now, you need to focus on yourself.

[ His eyes flicker over Erik before he nods, looking down. And winces. Nodding seems like a bad idea. ]

We both need training again.

[There's a grim truth in those words, much as it rankles Erik to admit that his efforts today were sub-par. That mistake with Winter's metal arm was amateur - he should have known better. He shouldn't have forgotten himself and tried to influence something he had no power over.]

A good idea.

[ His lips twitch despite himself. Erik's expression was priceless. ]

Hank said he'd help me there.

He's made a similar offer to me in the past. [Although that was more for the purposes of venting, than training.]

[ Tentative. ]

We could train together. Like we used to.

[He's quiet for a moment, thinking back to those days. It's been a while, and so much has changed. That shouldn't be a barrier to it, though. Only something to work around, reshape in the image of who they are now.]

Yes... we could. I did tell you you should use the gym. [Not at the same hours as Erik does, necessarily. Erik works hard and early, whereas Charles gets up later. There's no reason he couldn't do a second lot of work in the day.

Once he's healed. A grimace flickers over his expression as he remembers that he needs to recuperate, heal.]

[ Charles nods with a wince. ] I'll make a routine out of it.

[ His fingers rub Erik's knuckles, gentle. ] We could watch some movies. Take some time to ourselves.