Big Things

Chapter 1

Being 14 sucked. Being treated like a kid sucked. Especially when you were a kid with convictions, with strong ideals and many ideas.

Erik Lehnsherr lived for the day when he was going to be biiiig. When people would actually listen to him when he talked and not just aww and say he's adorable. Erik wanted to make a difference in the world. He wanted to challenge the status quo. He wanted to change the world. He'd seen so many injustices he wanted to stop them. But he was also 14 so he was basically expected to do his homework and play ball all day long like the other boys. As if everyone had to be the same and share the same interests! God forbid you're different!

The only person who felt his emotional struggles and frustration was his mother. Eddie Lehnsherr was a remarkable woman indeed. Erik loved her more than anything in the world. She was his favorite person. But even she couldn't really change the fact that Erik had no actual voice in the world of grown-ups.

"Be patient, my boy. One day you'll be older and then you'd be able to do all those things." she would say, stroking his hair gently.

Erik would look at her with a bloodied lip -- because of course he'd gotten into another fight again with this week's loser who claimed mutant politics were bullshit -- and groan. "I don't want to wait. It's unfair that I have to wait."

"I know." She'd say softly and pull him into a warm motherly embrace. That would calm Erik down. For about 15 minutes. Then his brain would begin raging all over again about all the wrongs of the world. That's just what Erik Lehnsherr was like. And he didn't expect to change any time soon.

~*~

If you asked Erik what he hated most about school, he'd probably say the stupid humans who think they're better than everyone, and school outings. School outings were really dumb. What was the point of school outings anyway? He'd much rather stay in his room and listen to Mystique's speeches. Mystique was magnificent! Erik loved her with passion! She was his idol! She was only 6 years older than him but she's been fighting for mutant rights since she was 16! She went out on protests even when she was like Erik's age but that never stopped her. She was probably ignored too when she was a child, her words not taken seriously by the grown-ups. Well, she showed them! Her activist group was the most active and relevant one of all. The few improvements in mutant policy came from the Mystique Bunch and that was inspiring. Erik wanted to be a part of that team so desperately! He's even sent a bunch of embarrassing letters to his hero but he doubted she's read them... She was so busy after all, saving the world and all.

"This sucks! It's gonna be some stupid weird-ass mutie freak show!" Stryker, one of his very annoying human schoolmates, whined when they were taking their seats in the school buss.

Erik pursed his lips and clenched his fists. He wasn't supposed to get into fights. He wasn't supposed to get into fights.

"It's like, can they please not be born? Like, at all?" Stryker laughed with his group of idiot buddies.

That was it. Erik got into a fight.

~*~

He got away with his 'aggressive behavior' because of the school day out. They were already behind schedule so the teacher only gave them a warning and made Erik and Stryker sit in the opposite parts of the buss. Erik took the back, of course. He was frowning and panting, his hair was a mess and so were his clothes. Stryker had a bruised lip but neither of them was bleeding so that was another thing that saved Erik from getting into trouble with the Principal again. He was lucky for that. He hated it when they called his mother. He didn't want to disappoint her. She understood his reasons but it was no excuse to worry or embarrass her.

He slumped his shoulders and flopped back into the seat. He had the whole back to himself, no one was sitting next to a mutie with anger management issues. Not even the other two mutants in the class. The fear of getting into trouble if associating with the school's local troublemaker was too big to overcome. Erik didn't understand their lack of passion and conviction to unite and change things around here but he did not blame them for it either. He stared out the window. They were going to an 'exotic fair', which was just another name for 'mutant freak show'. A fair exhibiting mutants with visible mutations as if they were some kind of caged animals. Or mutie freaks, as Stryker called them. Erik hated this. Why was his class even going to that thing? It wasn't going to teach them anything! It was degrading and offensive! Not to mention painful to watch.