[2009 – October]
Lightgrey blazer and skirt, a white blouse that hugged her curves, faint traces of make-up accentuating her flawless facial features, and soft flaxen locks that were tied into a beautiful braid that framed her face, Emma simply looked like every man's dream – gorgeous yet graceful.
She leaned back in her chair as she watched Xavier and some of his X-Men enter her office, her heart calm with Elijah's dark figure standing behind her to her right.
Emma was strong and independent herself but Elijah's presence made her forget that sometimes, his presence tempting her to relax in the knowledge that he was there for her and would protect her.
It was a strange sense of comfort that she hadn't felt in decades, which made it all the more special. Especially after he had helped her save Celeste.
Knowing that there was someone that she could rely on, Emma had difficulty expressing how precious this was to her.
"How rare of you to visit my school, Charles.", she called out to the older telepath, hidden coldness in her gaze as she knew that Xavier had come to question her younger brother's actions.
"Emma, thank you for seeing us at such short notice.", Charles replied politely, though his eyes flickered from her to Elijah's figure behind her, a strange mix of fear, disappointment, and concern in them.
He wasn't the only one though as the three veteran members of the X-Men by his side likewise tried hard to not outright stare at her brother. And while they all had carried some degree of fear in their eyes, only Hank and Ororo looked outright solemn when facing Elijah.
Logan, on the other hand, while still serious, seemed more impressed and curious.
Emma wasn't surprised at their actions as she knew that Logan was the only one that didn't care one bit about the hundreds of lives that Elijah had reaped by decimating the Facility's underground base.
The others all seemed disturbed by her brother's actions, their ideas about morality conflicting greatly with what he had done. At least that was the case with Ororo and Hank.
Charles Xavier, her former mentor and only mature mutant that rivaled her telepathic prowess, was a different story altogether as his motives were often much more obscure.
Still, this time it didn't take a genius to understand that Xavier had not come here just because of his own desire to do so, but he had most likely been incentivized by politicians and other high-ranking members of the government to approach Elijah and figure out if he was a threat.
The president himself may have even asked Charles to do so, seeing as the older mutant had always tried to be close to the ruling body of the U.S., mainly to have some modicum of influence that allowed him to ensure the safety of his students, as well as give him the right to speak on behalf of all mutantkind.
Emma though often thought that the older telepath enjoyed his influence a little too much while doing too little for his own kind, considering his position.
In that sense, she had much more respect for Erik as he would never bend over backward to accommodate humanity if it meant risking that harm befell his own people.
"So, what brings you here, Charles?", Emma asked her old teacher after her office door fell shut and he and the three others found themselves before her desk.
Sighing quietly, the older telepath shifted his gaze to her brother and stated: "Many of those that I had been working with over the years to see a legislation put in place that ensured that mutants were given the same basic rights as humans, have expressed grave concerns about your actions, Elijah."
"I came here in the hope of finding some answers that would help calm things down. To give them some kind of explanation and assurance. We are at a critical stage after all, politically."
"The President did express his intentions to help our kind before, but it is not an easy legislation to get through Congress, especially if the majority of those in power fear our kind.", he ended.
Emma frowned in response to his words as she knew that Charles wasn't lying but hearing his words still made her uncomfortable.
No one liked to be seen as a second-class citizen without rights, especially not someone that had been treated as nothing but property as she had been by the former Inner Circle members of the Club.
She didn't speak up though and just looked at her younger brother, unsure about how he would react, considering that Charles' words were certainly not easy to digest for a normal teen.
Being told that one's actions may have consequences for the whole mutant race, was naturally something that would weigh on anyone's heart.
Elijah though didn't even change his expression as he just stared down at the elderly mutant, his gaze somewhat hard and piercing.
"What is it that you want, Professor? A promise that I will stay my hand when dealing with humans who threaten and harm what I hold dear? Are you suggesting that I let them harm and kill those I care about without consequences?"
"For what? Just so that they will not be frightened? The most violent and malicious species on this planet, and you want me to take into consideration their 'feelings?", her younger brother questioned with a dark tone, the green in his eyes slowly retreating in favour of nebulous darkness.
His brows furrowing, Charles seemed to not have expected Elijah's words, pausing for a moment to formulate an answer as Hank raised his voice in the short ensuing silence.
"Young man, you seem to-", he started with a frown, trying to speak up in opposition, though he was promptly cut off.
"Quiet.", Elijah voiced out a single word, atmosphere-freezing pressure accompanying the word, "I wasn't speaking to you, Mr. McCoy."
Even Emma's eyes couldn't help but widen at her younger brother's domineering actions, not to mention Xavier and his X-Men. The difference was that she could move without being affected by the pressure.
"Coexisting peacefully with humanity is the best way to ensure the survival of our race. And for this to become reality, compromises, and even sacrifices, are necessary, unfortunately.", Charles finally answered, a solemn expression on his face, a hint of pain flashing past his eyes.
Sighing, Elijah shook his head as the pressure he exuded vanished: "I wonder, is this what you tell yourself when you see the death and the suffering of your kind through Cerebro at the hands of humans? How many have you seen being abused, violated, or outright slaughtered, Professor?"
Shocked at her younger brother's direct words, Emma had only her own discipline to thank that she didn't gasp out loud as she heard them. Despite being the White Queen, she herself was stunned by how vicious Elijah's words were. Emma knew that he very rarely spoke without any restraint even if he preferred to be direct, so this was certainly a bit of a surprise to her.
She saw her former teacher's eyes widen, guilt and shame clear inside them.
"Enough! You have no idea about what you are talking about!", Ororo called out and stepped forward, lightning flickering on her fingertips, a storm raging in her eyes, "The Professor- … Kh-Ugh!"
Like Hank though, her voice was cut off as she suddenly faltered, falling back two steps as she held her head, the air of accumulating power around having vanished in an instant. Looking up in horror, Ororo stared at Elijah in fright.
Her face seemed to have paled considerably as if she had just suffered a horrible blow.
Emma wasn't sure what her younger brother had done as she hadn't sensed anything happening around her, even with her advanced mental capabilities and sensitivity to the ambient psionic energy.
"There will come a time, Professor, when you will have to choose on which side you want to stand. Hopefully, it will be the time when you finally can no longer watch as your own kind is getting treated worse than animals.", Elijah continued as he turned around and walked to the door.
"Until then, don't come here and try to lecture me about our dependence on the most violent species on this planet. Because this only makes you look like a fool and a liar."
"Worse even, it makes you look like a hypocrite."
The door shutting behind him, Elijah's last words still echoed through her office, followed by a heavy silence.