No One Knows It's You

[x]

Charles had never really cared for alcohol. It tasted even worse than it smelled, and it had the annoying tendency of amplifying the worst in people. Granted, he’d witnessed the occasional happy drunk, but for every pleasant drunk, there were at least three others who were less than. And since bar fights weren’t really Charles’s style but smart remarks were, it was best to monitor his intake of the stuff. At the very least.

Still, a few drinks never really hurt anyone. So long as they were kept at a few drinks, that is. Charles took another swallow of the pub’s scotch—swill compared to what his late father had squirreled away in the booze cabinet Kurt hadn’t been able to find, the greedy bastard—and let his mind reach out to the other patrons. Where there any lovely young mutants he could charm into bed? It had been awhile since he’d last had a good shag, and he was beginning to find himself getting a bit desperate for a bit of carefree fun.

One mind tugged at his, an unconscious action on the part of the young lady, he was certain. No one knew about his telepathy. (Kurt had, for all of the sixty seconds it had taken Charles to reach into his mind and take the information away.) He redirected his focus onto her and immediately found himself faced with a different sort of mind.

Unlike the humans he spent his life surrounded by, her mind had a slightly different texture to it, something different in her genetic structure, and Charles felt his hopes rise up without his consent. Of all places to meet another mutant. Hopefully, at least. If nothing else, he could hopefully get a good shag out of her before the night was done.

Charles took his drink and left the barstool behind, following his telepathy to the mind that had gotten his attention. She was certainly a lovely little thing, wasn’t she? What sort of mutation did she have?

“Well hello there, love,” he started with a gentle grin. “What’s a lovely lady such as yourself doing here all by her lonesome?”

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Raven wasn't one to frequent pubs, but she found herself in one anyway. Sometimes she just tried to drink her cares away, but she had found out quickly that the solution to her problems couldn't be found in the bottom of a bottle, or a shot glass for that matter. Her favorite part about pubs though were the pick up lines that she would get. Oh, if only those boys knew what she really looked like. It was why she never really fell for them. Sometimes she'd play along until they realized they weren't going to take her home, then she'd let them down with the old 'Oh, my boyfriend is here. Sorry.. I have to go.' line. Or she'd just roll her eyes and walk away. She didn't care if she made them angry.. they wouldn't want to meet her in an ally to rough her up. They wouldn't walk away feeling very comfortable. 

She had lost track of time as to how long she had been sitting there, staring at her empty glass that once held the pub's house brew. She was in a daze, thinking about her days in Germany, and how she was sick of being on the run when someone started to talk to her. A man. And ah.. one of those pick up lines followed him. A smile still curved on to her lips as she lowered her glass and turned to face the direction that the line was coming from. At least he was a cute one..but they all wanted the same thing. It never changed. "The same as you, I would imagine." She mused with a slight shrug of her shoulders. "Although, how do you know i'm alone? I might have a big strong boyfriend that's about to come out of the wash room to pound you in to oblivion." Her smile widened even more. "So, are you a gambling man then? Or are you gonna walk away and try that charm of yours someone else?" She lifted a brow in a teasing, yet challenging sort of manner. 

Raven enjoyed  a good bantering  session, and if a man was up for that, then all the more power and luck to him. It was the only way to keep Raven's attention. 

[x]

“The same thing as you, I would imagine,” she answered. “Although, how do you know I’m alone? I might have a big, strong boyfriend that’s about to come out of the washroom to pound you into oblivion.”  The lady's smile widened at the end of her quip, and Charles found himself impressed; she was even prettier when she smiled. 

He liked her wording; if he could find a willing man who wouldn’t be a bundle of issues, he wouldn’t mind being “pounded into oblivion”—though he doubted that was her actual meaning.

“Do you have a big, strong boyfriend I should worry about,” he retorted, sliding into the seat across from her. A quick brush against her mind told him that no, she did not have a boyfriend, let alone one who would gladly attempt to beat him for striking up a simple conversation.

“Are you a gambling man, then? Or are you gonna walk away and try that charm of yours on someone else?”

“Well, considering that you, my dear, are the most interesting person in this pub—not to mention the most attractive—I daresay I’d much rather play my chances with you,” he replied, flashing her a slightly arrogant smirk.

He discretely poked at her mind, trying to determine if he was actually detecting another mutant, or if he’d had just a bit too much of the scotch.

“The name's Charles Xavier,” he offered. “And you are...?”

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Her bluff had been called. Oh well, no big deal. "Maybe..." She said simply. Taking control, because that's what Raven did, she tapped on the bar to get control of the bartender. "One more for me, and one of whatever my friend here is drinking." Obviously she did indeed did not have a boyfriend. Otherwise she wouldn't have been ordering him a drink. She grinned a little when he said he'd take his chances - after saying his reasons why - and she sighed. "Well, you're in luck. No boyfriend about to beat you in to the ground. Good call." A playful smile touched her lips.

Charles Xavier.. well, that was a name that rolled off the tongue. She'd never heard a name quite that British before, even here in the UK. "Raven Darkholme," her smile widened slightly. "It's a pleasure to meet you." She noticed that he was looking at her rather intently.. maybe he didn't mean to, but it was different than the normal gawking. "You look like you have a question, Charles." She leaned forward, placing her elbow on the top of the bar while resting her chin in the palm of her hand. "You can ask it. I'll answer as truthfully as I feel like answering." Another playful grin touched her lips. She even laughed a little. 

[x]

She was rather gracious in defeat, it seemed, judging from her reaction to his calling her bluff. Still, the young woman took control and got the attention of the bartender.

“One more for me,” she ordered, “and one of whatever my friend here is drinking.”

Well that cut the drink-ordering portion of his standard line, but Charles didn’t find himself too bothered by it. That line was designed to pick up human women—and the occasional man, on those nights when he felt particularly daring and there was a particularly attractive one milling about. (Men were easier to convince so long as they topped, Charles had found, as though it was somehow an insult to be the “woman” during sex. Utterly ridiculous, but expending the effort to convince them otherwise was far beyond what Charles was willing to spend on them.) This dear lady was a much more exquisite prize, if she was in fact a mutant like himself, and therefore deserved better.

“Well, you’re in luck,” she said again. “No boyfriend about to beat you into the ground. Good call.”

“I tend to make a lot of those,” Charles replied, still grinning. Her smile had turned playful, and it was certainly the sort of smile that suited her face.

“Raven Darkholme,” she offered, her smile widening a bit. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“The pleasure is all mine, I assure you,” he answered. Raven, hmm? After the wise bird itself, it seemed. Now, just how apt a moniker was it?

“You look like you have a question, Charles.” She leaned forward, resting her chin in her palm. “You can ask it. I’ll answer as truthfully as I feel like answering.”

Playful suited Raven well; as did laughter, he found. As far as looks went, Raven was not the most stunning woman he’d ever laid eyes on, but there was far more to her than some of the solely gorgeous ones. Not only was he catching what could possibly be a mutation in the same definition as his telepathy, but she was simply more interesting to speak with.

“It’s not a question I’d care to ask in public,” he responded. “Perhaps in my flat?”

He laughed a bit, waving it off as a half-joke. “But no, I must say, my dear, you either have a lovely expression of the TCHH gene or you are a rather skilled with a curling iron. Though, if it is the latter, you are in possession of a mutation—and a stunning one, at that.”

Charles kept his mind against hers, waiting to see her reaction to the concept of mutation. It wouldn’t be a definite thing, but if she thought loudly enough, that could be the ticket.

[Deleted]

This Charles Xavier was good with is words. He must have had quite a bit of practice. Telling her the pleasure was his, she almost retorted with something like 'not yet it isn't' or something equally as silly and corny, but she pushed that thought away for  now. There was something about this guy that she just couldn't put her finger on, and it peeked her curiosity. Something was different than the other men who hit on her. Something...unique. 

When he gave her the cheeky response of how he'd rather ask his question in his flat rather than in public, she wondered exactly how true it was. However, he seemed to have dismissed it, and spoke of mutations. She didn't know fancy names for them, but she knew that 'M' word. "Well, I am rather good with a curling iron, but I do have a few tricks up my sleeve." She quirked a brow. Her mind thought of her own mutations. Of course she didn't realize that the cat was out of the bag the moment she had said it. 

Unless, of course, Charles wasn't reading her mind entirely and was simply reading her reaction. She felt rather confident... and playful. Maybe if he did show her his flat, she'd show him just how her mutations could work. It'd either intrigue him or scare him away. Either way it could make for an interesting evening. 

[x]

“Well, I am rather good with a curling iron,” she confessed, “but I do have a few tricks up my sleeve.”

Charles grinned a bit at that, before his mind caught her thoughts. She was a mutant! His grin grew and he shifted a bit to cover up a bit of a relieved laugh. Another mutant; he’d always known he couldn’t be the only one in the world. It was sheer arrogance to think such, for one thing, and rather depressing, for another. Charles wondered if she’d ever met another mutant, or if she was aware of his own status as a mutant.

“Something tells me that’s rather true,” he replied, giving her a cursory once-over, trying to reconcile what he’d seen in her mind with what he could currently see. She had blue, scaled skin underneath all of that pretty pale flesh; Charles wanted to see it, wanted to see her natural form. Memories could be tainted with one’s own perceptions and body image, and Charles wanted to be sure she was just as lovely as he’d seen in her mind. “As a matter of fact, I’m quite interested in these tricks you claim to possess.”

He set his drink down and looked her in the eye, giving her the best intriguing look he could manage. “I will admit, I was a bit serious when I mentioned my flat. Care to join me and show me some of your tricks?”

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Raven had no idea how, but it was as though he knew that she was a mutant. The 'tricks' that the two of them spoke of.. they both knew what she was talking about. However, in her mind, she was confident that he had no idea what she could do. When he spoke of her showing him her 'tricks' at her flat, she stayed silent for a moment, thinking. Now, either he was very curious about her.. he was a mutant himself.. or he had a van waiting out back to kidnap her so that he could take her to some sort of government facility to have her tested on or something. Luckily for Raven, though she knew to be careful. 

"Alright.." she mused after taking long enough to sip her drink to answer his question. "Tell you what. We'll go back to your flat, and I'll show you mine if you show me yours.. deal?" She quirked a brow. She wasn't sure if he even -had- a  mutation.. it wasn't one that could be seen, that was for sure...but maybe he  had something. Something that would show her that she wasn't alone in the world. She just needed proof. However.. since she honestly didn't know that he could find out through her mind what her natural form was.. she figured she'd have him running for the hills quite quickly. 

[x]

Raven considered his offer for a moment, and Charles kept his mind’s eye on hers; she was debating the likelihood that he was also a mutant against another possibility that he was going to kidnap her and experiment on her. A sliver of irritation slithered through him at that; he’d been subjected to a number of experiments as a child, both by his own father and later on his stepfather. They’d ranged from hardly anything of consequence to the sorts of torture Charles was entirely sure would be counted among the most heinous of war crimes. If Raven hadn’t been subjected to experimentation, then Charles was going to damn well make sure she never would be.

“Alright,” she decided, sipping at her drink. “Tell you what. We’ll go back to your flat, and I’ll show you mine if you show me yours. Deal?”

Charles grinned. “Fair enough. You have yourself a deal, my dear Miss Darkholme.”

Raven seemed utterly confident in the self-depreciating way that as soon as he laid eyes on her natural form, he’d run for the hills. Not at all likely, and a grave error in her world view that he’d simply have to correct during the course of the night. From what he’d gleaned from her mind, Raven was stunning beneath the pale skin. After all, a disguise was always a self-portrait, as they say.

Charles threw down a few bills to cover their drinks and grabbed his coat. “Shall we, then?”

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Raven felt a twinge of nervousness that she hadn't felt in quite awhile, actually. It wasn't the type of nervous that led to fear, it was something else. When he said that it was a deal, she could feel her heart racing. That was all of the proof she needed that he was like her.. at least in some form. Of course she'd keep her chin up as though she hadn't been incredibly anxious, and she grabbed her own jacket. "Let's go." She grinned. "I've got a car. I could meet you there, unless you don't live far from here." It was probably best that she took her own vehicle if she had to. It was better than walking a long distance when he got freaked out. 

Oh, if only she knew that he could hear every word that she was saying to herself, and if she only knew that he was aware of how excited she was. She couldn't help it, though. After so many years of thinking she was alone in the world, it ignited her spark of hope in to a full on inferno. "Thanks for the drink, by the way." Even though she had full intentions on paying for them herself, he seemed to catch it before she could. She liked that about him.. he was quicker than her. She'd never encountered that before, either. 

[x]

Raven was such a dear when she was nervous, Charles decided, particularly when that nervousness had nothing to do with fear. He wondered how that would change once the truth of his powers came out; years under his father’s clinical gaze and his stepfather’s scalpel had taught him that telepaths were beings to be feared, controlled, guarded against. It was the reason Charles refused to reveal his mutation to anyone who wasn’t also a mutant—but even this, even the possibility of coming clean to another human being, was enough to turn his stomach into a mass of knots. Charles immediately swallowed his nerves with the last of his drink.

“Let’s go,” she said with a grin, grabbing her jacket. Charles matched her grin with one of his own. She offered the use of her own car, which Charles debated the merits of before agreeing. It might put her a bit more at ease to have an out nearby, considering his flat was halfway across town.

“Well, considering I was considering a rather romantic cab ride across Oxford, I daresay you have me beat,” Charles replied. “Though, would it be too much of an imposition for me to accompany you? Unless you happen to know where my flat is located, that is.”

He offered her a teasing smile as they left the pub. There was so much hope blazing within her and Charles felt just the tiniest bit dizzy from it. However the night went, they would both part ways knowing they weren’t alone in the world. After so many years of hoping and searching as discreetly as he could, to finally find himself in the presence of a fellow mutant was staggering.

“Thanks for the drink, by the way,” Raven added.

“Well, it would simply be rude of me to drink with such a lovely woman as yourself and then not show my gratitude with a few pounds out of pocket, now wouldn’t it?”

He had plenty of money to work with; despite his father’s clinical interest in him, the man had been in possession of just enough basic dignity to ensure that his son would be well-cared for later in life. Financially, at least. Charles shoved that line of thinking away, returning his focus onto his companion for the evening. Whatever her mutation, whatever its strengths and limitations, she was worth so much more than the few pounds he’d dropped for their drinks. A potential ally in the world was utterly invaluable. By the end of the night, he could only hope she felt the same of him.

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When Charles had mentioned a romantic ride through Oxford, she felt a little like she was acting like a bit of an idiot. He wasn't some guy just trying to pick her up after all. He was probably kind of decent.. but that remained to be seen completely. Raven was still a little edgy about people in general..especially  now that he knew that she was of the mutant persuasion. He mentioned accompanying her, and she realized that.. well, he was a student. Of course he just took taxis from one place to another instead of driving. It was probably the best idea anyway. "Well now that you mention it, the cab ride does sound much better than a romantic ride in a beat up volks wagon." She grinned. Not to mention she probably drank a little too much to be driving anyway. Drinking always made her day dream a little more than she normally did.

She quietly laughed when he mentioned having drinks with a lovely woman such as her. He was pretty good at the whole compliment thing. She would have probably rolled her eyes at the compliment if it were under different circumstances, but considering that she just met someone that was like her? It was worth holding out for. Besides, he was pretty cute, too. Not to mention there was something about his accent that made her a little weak kneed. Sure, she heard it here all the time, but he wore it pretty well. 

She walked outside, and she moved toward the edge of the sidewalk, lifting her hand to hail a taxi. "You'd think if I were as 'lovely' as you say I was, more taxis would stop for me." She mused with a grin. 

[x]

The realization that he was a student crossed Raven’s mind, accompanied by a wonderful line of reasoning that she’d probably had too much to drink to really drive safely across town. Charles found himself nodding just a bit at her line of thought, still a bit enamored with the uniquely mutant flavor of her mind. Did all mutants have such wonderful dissimilar minds?

“Well, now that you mention it,” she relented, “the cab ride does sound much better than a romantic ride in a beat-up Volkswagen.”

She grinned and Charles laughed a bit at that. He kept tabs on her mind, half-listening in to her thoughts in the same way one couldn’t help but overhear a conversation going on at the next table. Raven was relatively won-over by his flirting; Charles’s ego swelled a bit at the proof that he hadn’t lost his touch in his dry spell. Normally, all usage of his mutation in his flirtation was purely parlor tricks, nothing too grand or tiring; he normally went after humans, who were hardly worth more effort.

He was rather thrilled at the prospect of getting Raven to his flat, hoping that the sheer relief of meeting another mutant would be enough to ease any concerns she might have regarding the exact nature of his mutation.

“You’d think if I were as ‘lovely’ as you say I was, more taxis would stop for me,” Raven mused, still grinning as she repeatedly failed to hail a cab.

Charles grinned. “That’s because you don’t know the trick, it seems,” he said as he raised a hand, letting his mind reach out to the nearest available cabbie.

Perhaps it was more akin to cheating as he planted the decision in the man’s mind to stop for two drunk college students, but Charles had never really bothered to care. It was simply him using one of his God-given talents, was it not? Hardly cheating, in his book; besides, it wasn’t as though he ever did anything at all harmful to the cabbies in question. If anything, he helped them out; he was a generous tipper when the mood so struck him.

The cab pulled up and Charles opened the door. “Shall we, then, my dear?”

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So not only did Charles have the whole Charming British thing going on for him, but on top of that, he had pretty amazing cab hailing skills. "Well, you'll have to teach me those tricks some time.  Usually it takes me forever." Unless of course i'm wearing a mini skirt, she thought. But the ones who only stop for legs are the kind that usually drive home with broken hands. Little did she know, that Charles could hear those thoughts that made her acually smile - just a little.

She carefully moved in to the back seat of the taxi and slid over to the side to make room for Charles to get in, so he didn't  have to go all the way around to the other side of the car. There were so many questions she'd wanted to ask him, but with a stranger driving them around, it wasn't exactly safe to do so. "So is this the treatment all of the girls you pick up get? Or just us special ones." Se mhused with a playful wink.

[x]

“Well, you’ll have to teach me those tricks some time,” Raven said as the cab pulled up. “Usually it takes me forever.”

Unless, of course, I’m wearing a mini skirt, her mind muttered, But the ones who only stop for legs are the kind that usually drive home with broken hands. Charles grinned at the thought; he very much enjoyed the spirited ones. Never a dull moment with women who didn’t suffer fools gladly.
 
"I'm not sure if it's something I could actually teach you," Charles replied.  "A good deal of evidence supports the idea that it's simply a gift one's born with."

Raven slid into the cab, moving over to the far side and allowing Charles to get in after her. He settled himself into the car and shut the door, giving the cabbie his address. There were thousands of questions bouncing around in Raven’s head, many of which were ones Charles wouldn’t mind asking her, himself; he could only get so much from her mind without digging deeper and using his power a bit more invasively.

“So is this the treatment all of the girls you pick up get,” Raven asked, her voice light and teasing. “Or just us special ones?”

She winked and Charles laughed. “My dear, I’ve never met someone nearly as special as you.”

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This  Charles fellow was certainly charming. It was something that had crossed her mind several times, and he just kept proving it over and over again, even more. This could be potentially dangerous for Raven. He seemed far too intrigued in her secret, and she was even more curious to see if he'd stick around when he found out. It was a dangerous game of chicken, and even though it could potentially get her caught one day by the wrong people, it was one that Raven continued to play over and over again. This time.. something seemed different. He was special too.. she knew it. It wasn't just her being gullible this time. There was something more to the story. 

He said that he'd never met anyone nearly as special as her. Well if he really had a natural ability like she had - something that she'd heard called..mutations - then he'd be the most special person that she'd ever met too..but all of that remained to be seen. "Oh, handsome. You have no idea." She muttered as she glanced out of the window. She took a deep breath, to gather herself. Part of her wanted to do the big reveal right now, get this all over and done with, but she didn't really want them to get in a car accident. The cab driver would have likely swerved right in to a bus.