Big Things

Chapter 18

Charles dedicated most of his time to the new Mutant Center he opened. It was a marvelous shelter, a masterpiece of a project, a place where each mutant could come and be offered help, protection, assistance, care. It was a safe haven for everyone who needed it. The Center became Charles' child and he kept pouring all his time and energy into it.

His private life consisted mostly of dinners with Raven and Hank and their child. Yes, Raven got married and had a kid that was now 2 years old. It was an adorable little blue thing too and Charles loved being an uncle. He often babysat for her when she and Hank were too busy with their own work. There were also several outings with his new best friend Ororo Munroe who was also his right-hand person in the Center. But other than that his personal life didn't shine with anything remotely interesting. Charles didn't mind. There were lots of projects to concern himself with anyway, future plans for the center, day-to-day running, problems that kept emerging out of nowhere. All those things kept him busy enough. Things like the mutant registration act. The idea that all mutants had to register their powers and be known for what they could do was not a novel idea. It's been out there for quite some time now. However, never before had it been so passionately promoted by its supporters. It was quickly gathering enthusiasm from a certain group of humans. Radicals, if Charles had to use the right word for it. It was a bad idea, this act.

"Firstly," Charles would say on many occasions both public and private, "this act would institutionalize the division in our society between those who were born mutants and those who were born humans. Secondly, not all mutants would be safe if they came out as such and a legislation like that would take away their choice. It is a private matter and each individual should have the opportunity to keep it to themselves if they so wished. Thirdly, it was frankly impossible to list all things a mutant could do since a mutation is a very relative matter. Much like a talent, it could develop more in time and with practice or it could stay the same. It can change, therefore it is impossible to calculate a mutation and precisely predict the abilities one could eventually have. It is as much inherited as it is an unknown potential."

And last but not least, this legislation was personally pissing him off. It was infuriating that anyone would even suggest such a thing! Registering mutants as danger to society! Anyone, mutant or human, had the potential to be dangerous . A man behind a wheel could be times more dangerous to society than any mutant. A human serial killer with an ax was more dangerous and yet it was the mutant kid that got kicked out of school for incidentally burning a trash can when her powers manifested. At the same time when a human incidentally harmed his father with a knife so that the old man had to spend months in a hospital, that got brushed off as an accident and the guy walked with a warning. The inequality of the treatment towards humans and mutants was still a fact, unfortunately, but once they institutionalize it things would get really bad. That would be when hope starts dying.

Charles was furious and he wasn't going to stand idly and watch. He was lost in thoughts about his new plan for action when Ororo walked in his office.

"This is for you." she said placing a heavy book on his desk.

"Oh! The Once and Future King !" Charles exclaimed. "My favorite book! And a first edition! Thank you, Ororo!"

"It's not from me. Someone left it for you. It was on Kitty's desk this morning. She asked me to give it to you."

Kitty Pryde was Charles' new assistant. She was a lovely young girl that used to come to the Center to get help, then she came often to volunteer and now she came every day to work.

Charles was slightly puzzled. "Oh? Who's it from?"

"A Max Ei--"

"Eisenhardt." he finished the name at the same time as her and sighed exasperatedly.