Alicia hadn’t seen her new housemate yet and she wasn’t exactly looking forward to it either. It wasn’t so much that she had an opinion about Erik Lehnsherr, she’d talked to him a little bit before when he’d been here but nothing much, what she did know was he wasn’t exactly known as a good guy and she was pretty sure Logan wasn’t a fan of his. That alone told her this wasn’t going to be a great living situation and the last thing Laura needed was to get hurt again.
She’d gone out early that morning for a run but still felt broken, she couldn’t exactly figure out how to keep everything she was feeling in check, the, she didn’t know what to call it, fight, maybe, with Oliver wasn’t helping her feel any better either.
Opening the front door she had three coffees, one hot chocolate and a bag of pastries she set down on the kitchen counter when she heard a sound, jumping she had her wand in her hand down by her side ready, her body was tense as she watched her new housemate walk out into the kitchen, her eyes drifting to his ankle monitor and back up to his face. Usually she’d say something, but in this case, she didn’t say a word. The dogs were all busy getting water and only glanced up at Erik.
Erik was accustomed to getting a severe reaction to his presence when people were aware of his particular reputation. In a new world, with a cause worth taking up, he wanted to show himself to be at least mildly different. But when he was identified so baldly by the villain protocol, it seemed as though opinions were already forming.
Particularly, it seemed, those opinions of him as a roommate. When he walked into the room and the young lady maintained her silence, he chose to speak up and break the proverbial ice.
“I promised the little one I would take care around all the animals.”
Starting to take the drinks out of the holder she pushed one of the coffees towards him and took one herself. She didn't know how he took it and went with just black, the third coffee was for Logan.
"I wouldn't let her hear you calling her little one," Alicia cautioned. She normally would have said thank you for making sure not to upset the animals but she wasn't herself lately and this guy wasn't helping at all.
"So, are you and Logan going to be okay living in the same place, because Laura's been through enough." She didn't really know much about their world other than some things she'd been told by Laura and little things she'd picked up, but she got the impression Erik and Logan weren't exactly buddies.
“Understood.” He nodded his thanks and took an experimental sip -- she got it in one. With a smile, he leaned his elbow on the kitchen counter and couldn’t help but feel some modicum of respect for her. It was clear that her relationship with Laura was familial.
“It isn’t my intention to rock the boat. Logan and I go back a ways, this is true. But our paths diverged.”
"That doesn't really answer my question," Alicia narrowed her eyes watching him carefully. "Just because it isn't what you say your intention is, doesn't mean there won't be a problem." She'd take Logan's side mostly because he was biologically Laura's father and she knew him better.
"Your paths diverged is a nice way of saying things went bad? " It wasn't really a question and her voice was shaking a little bit. She didn't realize it but she was just at the end of anything she could handle. Alicia hadn't dealt with the fact she'd been kidnapped, or that Marcus was gone, or the long list of other things that were getting to her. "Laura's lost enough, and I will not tolerate anything that makes things harder for her again." She was always protective of Laura, but she also knew Laura was strong and could take care of herself.
His brow arched and he considered his next words carefully. Inasmuch as he would have preferred simply walking out the door and building his own shelter away from them all, he knew he had to try if he was going to be allowed to stay. “I can’t speak for Logan.” A sigh.
“But they were bad. When Raven prevented me from assassinating Richard Nixon, I left Logan for dead. His abilities are clearly more than I know since he isn’t dead. But no, I do not intend to make anything hard for Laura. I want to be here.”
"The American President that resigned?" Alicia didn't know US history that well, but that was something she sort of remembered. "You tried to murder a president?" She didn't know that part.
"Great, just what we need, as if things aren't messed up enough, let's throw a bloody attempted assassin into the mix, that happened to leave our other housemate for dead." Alicia set down her coffee. Her body was shaking even though she didn't realize it. "You have to be kidding me." She looked up blinking away tears reaching to touch where the tattoo was from her latest kidnapping experience.
He pursed his lips and watched her closely. It seemed negligible to inform her that he attempted to save John Kennedy’s life when he was assassinated and wrongfully imprisoned. He’d met this woman for such a short amount of time but realized, automatically, something was very wrong. Something besides his presence in what was clearly her kitchen. His tone was quiet, if nonplussed.
“Do you want me to ask for alternate housing?”
"You haven't been here long enough to know, Atlantis doesn't really give you the option for alternate housing." Unless someone was engaged or married, it seemed to have rather set ideas about housing.
A huge part of Alicia felt like she was being punished for something. She wasn't really sure what but she felt like she must have done something to deserve... all of it.
She couldn't keep back the tears anymore, spinning around she had her back to him as she sunk down to the floor leaning against the center island of the kitchen. It was the worst time possible, but she couldn't keep it in anymore.
Erik wasn’t sure if his presence would bring Alicia greater consternation but the truth was, he felt like this was the kind of test that Atlantis was putting in front of him. This young woman wasn’t a mutant, no. But she was beloved by a mutant and she had her own powers. Something happened to her.
He leaned forward and gently placed his hand on her shoulder.
“ … what happened?” he asked her quietly. “You can tell me.”
There was so much going on in her head, and her body felt cold, she was shaking lightly, that feeling of despair running over her. She didn't even notice his hand on her shoulder. She couldn't at that moment everything had boiled over, everything over the last few months that she'd been keeping in came out. The only rational thought she had about it was that it was the worst time possible.
Shaking her head, she forced herself to swallow almost as if she was swallowing all of her emotions and pain back in where she could keep it locked away. Lifting a hand, she tried to whip away the tears but more kept coming.
Speaking wasn't an option.
Oh, this he understood. The pressure must have been building for weeks. He regretted being the straw that broke her camel’s back but he hoped he could be a safe place, too. Removing a handkerchief from his breast pocket, he sidestepped and offered it to her on an open palm.
“Breathe,” he said softly. “It’s okay. Take your time.”
It felt like everything she’d been holding in was blown up and she barely even realized he was holding his hand out with something in it. Alicia was blind at that moment and being that vulnerable she pulled her legs in closer, she wanted to disappear. Anywhere. She didn’t want anyone to see her like this.
She didn’t hear him say anything about breathing, the take her time is what caught her attention as she coughed out some of the pain.
“Take my time?” A humourless laugh followed. “I can’t.” Those two words seemed to spark something in her as she forced herself to stand ignoring the pain, ignoring the emotion behind all of it.
“I can’t…” she repeated grabbing onto the kitchen island behind her, her knuckles going white as she tried to stand strong.
“You must.” Erik was resolved to help the young woman whose will seemed to rival his own. He covered her palm with his hand and waited a beat.
“I don’t know what happened but I read it all over you. Just breathe. No one is here but me.”
“Just my luck,” she said chocked out with a hollow laugh. “Break down with the would-be presidential assassin.” She was trying to get the strength to at least, to at least what? She couldn’t even figure it out.
She looked down at his hand covering hers as she tried to catch her breath, trying to decide if she should tell him or not. After a good long minute, she finally said. “I was tortured….” she paused. “Again, and other shit.”
“To be fair,” he said wryly, “I did attempt to save one too.” When she told him what befell her, though, he stopped. With darkened eyes he held her hand for a moment longer before giving her space. He stayed close; close enough to be there for her if things started to go south.
“ … you don’t have to bear it all yourself and wait for the camel’s back to break. You can talk to people -- talk to me, you don’t know me. I’ll listen.”
“It’s not really that easy,” she managed as a few tears fell, she did manage to turn herself around to lean against the kitchen counter.
“Laura,” she paused unsure if she should say anything. “She needs me and she’s lost so much.” She wasn’t about to go through the hey, Logan’s her biological dad, the first people she stayed with… “And someone we both trusted left.” She didn’t think Marcus Flint left on his own but she missed him and it added to everything.
“So I gathered,” he said quietly. Laura’s temperament spoke volumes. He commended Alicia for her devotion to the young girl but let his voice grow in gentle warmth. “I understand that she needs you. But I think it’s important to have a place for you to … deal with what anchors you down.” Simply due to the fact that she broke so readily and shared her thoughts away from other listeners, it showed him that she had been keeping this inside.
“So you can be strong for her.”
Even getting the simple fact of what had happened out helped, sure, other people knew and there were comments here and there but she hadn’t dealt with any of it, truly dealt with it. Alicia whipped away a tear.
“You don’t really strike me as a listen to people’s problems and hand them tissues sort of bloke,” she didn’t say it negatively, it was more a matter a fact with a hint of humour to it.
Sighing she tried to decide what she should do versus what she wanted to do. The lines were confusing anymore. “Laura’s lost a lot of people lately,” was what she opted with. “Not to death.” She paused with a puzzled expression. “Well, that’s complicated, but a lot of people have left Atlantis and… We’ve both lost people we care about. Granted, not many would miss one of them.”
“ … honestly, looks can be deceiving.” He gave her a sideways smile and leaned against the counter, letting his eyes trail to the dogs who sat patiently waiting for some idea that Alicia was quite alright. Being in close proximity with the animals put him in mind of his daughter; a daughter whose friends were the creatures wandering out of the woods to play with her. He looked back up at Alicia, eyes unguarded.
“So, what’s next? You’ve experienced loss, you were tortured by the organization we’re fighting and you are keeping it all together for Laura. You seem like a ‘what’s the next step’ type.”
I break was the the thought she had at his challenge of what was next, but he had a point, what was next? Being broken wasn’t an option.
“I’ll make sure you don’t try and kill anyone in charge,” it was said in jest.. “And,” she paused her expression and voice turning serious. “I’m here.” That was all she could commit to, anything else felt like a lie. “I don’t break.”
“That isn’t my intention, but I’m glad I have someone watching me …” he told her, giving a firm resolution to his voice. Even if Alicia didn’t believe in herself, perhaps what she needed was to know that she could at least mildly shepherd someone. And he wondered at himself to find his heart willing.
“Okay. But if you do, you can do it right here.” He patted the counter. “And it doesn’t go past us.”
The conflicting emotions in her almost outweighed everything else. Alicia could feel how tied up she was from trying to hold herself together, trying to pretend everything was okay.
“I know some good hexes,” she warned before letting herself sink to the floor, her eyes starting to fill with tears, she shouldn’t break down her, not with someone she barely knew, and yet, it was exactly what she needed. “And,” she swallowed barely holding it together but not bringing herself to ask him to just sit down next to her.
But he did. Erik had been with enough overwhelmed mutants - had been overwhelmed enough - to understand when it was time to simply sit and let it go. He quietly gathered his legs beneath him and sat next to her, hands folded in his lap. He was simply a warmth -- a firm, consistent presence that promised that secret kind of comradeship.
A small broken smile crossed her features as she glanced over at him when he was seated, without even hesitating she let herself lean against him placing her head on his arm, she was too short to really reach his shoulder, and let the pain out in silent messy tears.