Avengers/X-Men One Shots - The Blood/White Phoenix Saga

ONE-SHOT I: Training

Set during Blood Phoenix: An X-Men: First Class Fanfiction

Erik Lehnsherr

It wasn't like I didn't want Adelaide training with me. I just hated the fact that she was giving me the cold shoulder the whole time. I wanted her to be with me, wanted her to realise her potential, to become more than she realised she could be. I loved her. Not in the weird way, though. Father, daughter. I realised that I hadn't been the best father to her, and I wanted to be more for her. I couldn't get to her, though. I silently cursed under my breath in German as I watched her train with Charles. Then the two kissed and my jaw clenched unconsciously. When they broke away, I saw him go away to train with Hank and I walked up to her. She glanced at me, then walked away.

Several hours later, I was walking through the large house in Westchester, Charles' house, when I came up to the library. Who should in there but Adelaide, my daughter, wearing a pair of reading glasses and reading a book. Her glasses were large and wire-rimmed, framing her face in a cute way. I didn't know she needed reading glasses before. She was reading what looked like a huge volume. I knew she loved reading though, from what her mother had told me before she died. Very much. As peaceful as the vibe looked, suddenly it was broken by her glancing up, over the top of her book, and staring at me. Taking off the glasses, she placed a bookmark in the book and laying the glasses on top of the book, she stared me directly in the eyes. Her eyes were so much like my own.

'I didn't know you needed reading glasses, Adelaide,' I said. She just kept staring at me, examining her fingernails. Then she looked down.

'There's a lot of things you don't know, Erik.'

'Still don't feel like calling me Dad?'

'No,' she snapped, the snark in her voice coming out again. I looked at her. Her brown hair was in ringlets around her face. She was cute. I could see why Charles liked her. Or in his case, loved her.

'Do you love Charles?' I teased. She glared at me.

'You know I can read minds, right? I heard that question radiating off of you before you even asked it. And if that's an attempt to tease me about my love life, you suck at it.' I could tell she was jesting with me, though. I smirked and her lips quirked upward, her nose slightly crinkling as she did so. So like her mother.

'Listen, I've been meaning to ask you-'

'What is it?'

'I want to train with you. To help you with your powers further. Like Charles wants to help you; so do I.' She looked down and when she looked back up, she was giving me a bold smirk.

'You really want to?'

'Yeah... could be fun.' She got up off the couch, that same smirk still decorating her beautiful face.

'Alright, old man, come on.' Taking my hand, she dragged me through the house until we were outside. When we got outside, she turned to me, her hands on her hips. 'What did you have in mind?' I looked around until I saw the metal fountain nearby, with the dolphins diving in and out of it. She looked my way, where I was looking, and I saw that smirk get bigger and bigger. Then she turned to me. 'So... what you're asking is you - you want me to mess with the pretty dolphins?'

'Yes. Turn 'em around. Like a carousel.'

'You've never even been on one.'

'Have you?' I asked pointedly.

'No. Mom never had any money to take me to Six Flags, or Disneyland for that matter.' He sighed. I could notice her watching me, slowly. Then I turned to her.

'When this whole thing with Shaw is over, I'll take you to Disneyland.' She turned to me, her jaw dropping almost to the floor.

'You're kidding!'

'No, I'm not. When this is all over, I will take you to Disneyland. I promise.' She raised one eyebrow. In that aspect of her features, that was my quirk in her eyes. That left eyebrow raise. Then I looked at her, and she was holding out her pinkie finger.

'Pinkie swear? Promise?'

'What am I, five?' I said in mock disgust.

'No. But you can't ever break a pinkie promise. Ever. It's there to stay.'

'Fine,' I replied in resignation. I gave her my left pinkie, and she lightly shook it, then let go and put her hands in her jacket pockets. After a while of staring at it, she let her hands drop out of her pockets and balled them into fists, standing there. Her eyes closed and for a while, there was silence. When she opened them again, she relaxed her hands and then, slowly, the dolphins started spinning around the fountain slowly, just like a pair of carousel horses. Almost like in a slow dance. I remembered the first time I danced with Adelaide's mother, Amelia. It was like nothing could touch us. Of course that was before Adelaide was born - and before I had to leave her. I silently cursed in my mind. Just then the dolphins stopped spinning.

'All it took was one thought to mess it up,' she said, turning to me. 'It's okay, though. You couldn't have known you were projecting.'

'I was - projecting?' I asked curiously.

'Yes. I could hear you thinking. About Mom, of course. It was a nice thought.'

'I'm sorry. I didn't mean to break your focus like that.'

'Like I said, it's okay. Totally. It was a nice thought anyway. More of a memory.' Half of her mouth quirked up in a smile. She looked up at me. 'I miss her. Mom, I mean.'

'I know you do.' I reached out my arms, and she stepped forward into my embrace, burying her face in my chest. I wanted to hold onto this moment for as long as possible.