Polar Opposites (Magneto)

[lorna]

Lorna loved this time of year. The arrival of fall, the changing of the color of the leaves and the first hints of snow in the air all meant one very important thing to her: that Christmas wasn't too far away. Even as an adult, that holiday had to be her most favorite of all time and she looked forward to it with the glee of a child. Her parents had always made a big deal out of the holiday, spoiling her as much as they could and while their relationship was a bit strained these days, Christmas was a time of forgiveness. If they could forgive her for being a mutant, she could forgive them for the secret they'd kept most of her life.

That said, the forecast wasn't calling for snow any time soon which was a shame. She loved to get outside, throw snowballs, make snow angels, skate on the lake. All the normal winter time activities that someone from a warmer climate might not appreciate. Things had changed so much in the last year there at the school. People had died then miraculously had come back to life, Jean and Scott being the two most prominent of those. Relationships between humans and mutants hit an all time low but seemed to be coming back around. At least, she hoped it was. This was a time for growth, for all of them.

Lorna decided to await the coming winter season doing one of her favorite activities, studying. It seemed that she had less and less time lately to devote to her studies and as a graduate student, she couldn't let that fall by the wayside. So she had gathered up one of the required reading materials for her Advanced Sedimentary Geology course, a highlight marker, a pen and a pad of notebook paper and entered the dining room.

She was looking for a snack while she studied and while she likely would have got more work done in her room, she didn't like to take food in there. So Lorna dropped her supplies on a table farthest away from the door then walked into the kitchen to grab a glass of grape juice and two pears. Lunch was over a while ago and dinner wouldn't be here for a few hours so she figured she had at least an hour before anyone came in looking to dine. Even if they did, she could usually tune out any conversation around her.

Settling into a chair, she opened the book, took a bite out of one of the pears and began to read, highlighter twirling between her fingers in her other hand.

[magneto]

[color="Charles always wanted to build bridges"

[lorna]

Lorna hadn't realized how long she'd been sitting there. People had come and gone and for the most part, she had ignored them and they in turn, her. She was in a public place within the mansion, she certainly wasn't going to begrudge anyone for being in there. Her pears had long been finished off as well as her glass of juice and she'd stood up once to grab a bottle of water. She knew that dinner was over by now but the lateness of the hour had been completely lost on her.

She was just stifling a yawn, a clear indication that she should probably head to bed soon, when she felt it. She'd noticed it here and there throughout the day but had chalked it up to her imagination or one of the new students that she hadn't met as of yet. However, as the man she really only knew as Magneto stepped into the room, Lorna froze.

The pen that had been in her hand dropped to her notepad with a nearly silent thud. She had not been involved with the conflict that he'd caused, having been chosen to stay behind to protect the younger students if necessary but Lorna was very much aware of who he was and what he could do. And now that he was within the same room as she, Lorna realized it had been him that she'd been feeling all day long.

Her left hand clenched into a fist but what could she do against Magneto should he choose to attack her? Their abilities were similar, yes, but he had much more experience with them then she did and based on the video feeds she'd watched of him, he could take her down with nothing more then a thought. It was rather frightening, although staring at the man in pajama pants sort of took the fear down a notch or two. Who confronted someone in their pajamas?

Finally, she nodded toward him. If someone else hadn't removed him from the premises already then perhaps he wasn't there to attack them. Since she'd been feeling his power for a while now so that meant he'd been there that whole time and nothing.

Closing her text book, she neatly set it aside and answered warily, “Sure.”

[magneto]

[color="Charles always wanted to build bridges"

Erik could feel it froze before his presence. And he did not blame her, he had always been the enemy, the bad guy. The terrorist who endangered the human race. He raised both hands in reassuring the girl smiled and slowly walked into the elegant dinner room that he remembered the place in which he and Charles had shared so many nights dining with young students, discussions on sleep Charles. A dream that Erik did not share.

He ought to admit that this girl had a wonderful magnetic aura, he could feel it in every pore of the skin. But she was young and inexperienced, out of control, she needed a good trainer, a good professor to control her magnetic powers.

"Calm. I have not come in for a fight. I'm harmless". Said with irony as he sat before her. In the table also had a basket of fruit, apples, oranges, pears, grapes. Erik picked up an apple, red and tasty. He gave a strong bite, savoring the flavor. "It is delicious, the apple of Westchester school are the best apples in the county. Thank you young lady for access to be in the company of this old decrepit. The most hated college professor. I love it" .He smiled taking another bite at the apple strong. "But do you still awake, my dear ?. You can not sleep?. Insomnia?. I see, you've been writing your journal?"

[lorna]

One black eyebrow raised as Magneto claimed he was harmless. Yes, that was akin to walking into a dragon's cave and expecting to take the gold without the dragon moving a muscle. It didn't happen, even if dragons were fictional. The point was, Magneto wasn't harmless, not in the least, and she could feel his power, taste it.

Lorna watched warily as he picked up an apple and bit into it, claiming they were the best around. Perhaps but she wasn't about to agree or disagree with him. This was simply too weird and again, Cable's words echoed through her mind. There was just no way.

“You take pleasure in being the 'hated Professor'?” she asked. “That's a bit masochistic of you.” Really, who took pleasure in knowing that he was hated other then someone who was likely clinically insane? Lorna was suddenly very glad that Magneto couldn't read minds.

When he inquired as to why she was still up, Lorna glanced at her texts and notepad. “No, nothing as simple as writing in a journal,” she admitted. “I'm working on my graduate degree and this is part of my required school work. I simply lost track of time and didn't realize how late it was.”

She studied him for a moment, still quite uncomfortable being in his presence. She could ask him to help her with her powers but she wasn't exactly thrilled with the prospect. There were too many variables when dealing with terrorists rather then just asking their fearless leader for help. Sure, Magneto could offer her the type of training that Scott couldn't but she didn't trust him, not one single hair on his head. It might be easy for someone like Cable to tell her it's what she needed to do but Lorna wasn't so keen on the idea herself.

Instead, she decided to ask the next question. “What are you doing here, Magneto?” He could take that in so many directions, she'd leave it up to him. Why was he at the mansion? Why was he sitting there next to her? There were many answers and before she allowed herself to relax, if that was ever going to happen, she wanted to know what he wanted from them. All of them.

[magneto]

[color="I will bring you hope, old friend, and I ask only one thing in return - don't get in my way"

Erik with more intensity tasted the apple that had seized the bowl and his mind came past images that he would not remember. The past was better than this. Perhaps for him the past was better in the little information they had regarding the new species began to be born. Nobody knew anything, and the mutants lived in hiding, they were free.

He sighed deeply and looked at the girl with intensity but without saying a word. The brightness of his blue eyes sparkled as he felt the magnetism of the powers of her. He had not said anything to her in respect of time.

"Being the most hated college professor?". Chuckled. "The truth is that I like, miss. I am a strict teacher and students did not know they could learn a lot from me. Ethics, psychology, engineering. But I have not forgotten them. As for me, so I do not no boy will tie me emotionally. For this is Charles. He has more paternal instinct than me. I have been a horrible father, my children hate me like everyone else. But I get to resign. They will understand once my vision of the world before or after ". Erik took another bite at the apple with strength and elegance elongated wiped his lips with a napkin. He felt the white beard was starting to grow, tomorrow morning is shave. "Oh, your graduate degree?. Do you need help?.

"What are you doing here, Magneto?"

"Mmmm .... That's a pretty direct question. The reason why I'm here is to do a favor to my friend Charles. He needed Professors and I have offered my self . There is every day more students to seek answers to their questions, they need to control their powers. I agreed to help him. It's normal, right?". Erik currently not the girl told the real reason he was in school westchester. The decision had been agreed with Charles. "But what interest you have all the students!. The reason why I'm here, all you want to know. At the moment I can not reveal, my dear. But I assure you that I'm not planning anything. This time this dangerous terrorist is innocent

[lorna]

Lorna was beginning to squirm under the intense gaze of Magneto. Those blue eyes were practically piercing her, it felt, and she could practically taste his power. Even without him actually using it, she could tell that he was so much stronger then she was. Her thoughts returned to the conversation she had with Amara earlier that day and realized that if she did ask for his help, she wouldn't have to go anywhere. He had essentially came to her. Had Cable...? Nah, even he couldn't have predicted this, right?

It was all so very confusing for the young electromagnetic. Again, just as it had when she'd been talking to Cable, her head began to hurt ever so slightly at all the what ifs and how comes. None of it made much sense at all, especially the part where the man from the future had hinted at her genetic relation to the man sitting at the table with her. But oh, how he could make her feel like a little child just by staring at her...

Then he began to talk, about how he enjoyed being the difficult teacher and about how he was a horrible father. That part peaked her interest because, well, it just did. That's when she remembered something that Cable had said, about her having siblings. No, this just wasn't right. Licking her drying lips, she asked, “You have children?” Honestly, she should have known this, should have known more about the man who had, so very recently, been a most feared and hated enemy. However, in true Lorna fashion, she'd buried her head in the sand and refused to learn more about her enemies. And Cable thought she could lead people?

Magneto offered to help her with her studies but she shook her head. “Thanks but I have it covered. It's a pretty boring topic for most people anyway but I find immense pleasure in geology and actually enjoy doing the homework,” she explained. Why she was worried about his feelings was beyond her.

She asked why he was there and actually smiled when he indicated that it was a direct question. There was one thing that he was going to discover about her if he stayed around. She didn't beat around the bush when she wanted to know something. The only reason she hadn't asked him the other questions mulling around in her head was because she didn't think she wanted the answers.

“The Professor asked you to come here?” she asked, astonished. What...what was he thinking? Again, the Professor was recently back from the grave (which was really becoming a habit amongst the X-Men), could he have lost his mind in the process? Lorna only knew that he was at Muir Island with Moira at the moment. She wasn't privy to any other information and likely only that much because she was on the senior team.

Lorna rubbed her temples with her forefingers and again, Magneto pleaded his innocence. She wasn't buying that but she wouldn't argue with the man. Not right now. Instead, she asked, “Are you...are you going to be training the students with their powers?” Maybe this was the opening she was waiting for.

[magneto]

Talking about his past was a bit difficult for Erik. Years ago he was not talking about his past life, the years when he was in a field of concentration, the death of his parents, murdered by the Nazis, his beloved wife, Magda, who died in childbirth. Their children ...

"Yes. My first daughter was named Anya, but she died when was still a baby. An angry mob burned down the house with Anya still inside. Humans, they were mad because they found out that I really was. Many do not understand why I hate humans. I think this is a reason to hate them, dont believe it ?". Magneto began playing with a silver spoon, his fingers turned but not touching, the spoon spinning nonstop on the table. His gaze fell on deaf ears: "I have two more sons, Pietro and Wanda. But I do not know anything about them. They have their life and I have mine. I was not a good father"

Erik raised the spoon and turned it into a mass of deformed metal, the brightness of silver was reflected in his blue eyes. He played with the atoms of that instrument and he floated the mass of shiny metal on the heads of both. He seemed to kick it ...

"Oh, geology. The study of the earth, I have enough experience with that. Gemology, stratigraphic ... A large field of research for a mutant that controls the metal, right?. But my favorite subject are the magnetic fields of the earth. I tried it once out of their way but unfortunately I was arrested."Magneto joked even playing with the mass of metal is now emulated a beautiful lake rippling shining silver." Yes, Charles asked me to return to Westchester School for reasons that concern X-Men. All students have asked me ... It seems that I am the gossip of the month?. Yes, I will train students with his powers, is required and must be done soon. "

[lorna]

Lorna listened with interest as Magneto began to talk about his children. If this had been any other time in her life, she wouldn't have even bothered to ask him about them but she now had a genuine interest in the offspring this man had. Even sitting across the table from him, she could sense his sadness when he talked about his first child, a daughter that had died quite young. His hatred for those who had caused the girl's death was palatable.

However, when he spoke about his other two children, Pietro and Wanda, Lorna's face registered the shock and it was all too obvious that she really hadn't been paying any attention lately. She didn't know who Wanda was past the fact that Pietro had spoken of her before. It was the part where Pietro, whom she actually did know as he lived there as well, was his son that had caught her by surprise. Granted, she understood why the man had never gone around announcing who his father was but still...Pietro?

She wasn't really watching what he was doing to the silverware but she could feel it. Her own powers were almost drawn to him in a way that a moth is drawn to a flame. Instead of joining him, though, she twirled the pencil in her fingers, ever so slightly and completely without her powers. She'd never been comfortable in her mutant skin and while she enjoyed some aspects of it, she did most things daily without the use of her abilities.

His eyes glowed as he transformed the structure of the spoon into a liquid pile of silver and it reminded her a bit of the way that her own powers glowed green when she used them. It had been a trait that she couldn't turn off, couldn't disguise and it made it so there was no question as to what she was doing when she did it. Unlike some people who could move things with their mind and no one really have a clue what happened, Lorna wasn't so lucky. The glow she emanated at times resembled her hair color.

“It seems I was...naturally drawn to the topic even as a young girl,” she told him when they discussed her particular major. She actually loved all aspects of geology, from studying the very nature of the rocks of the earth to searching out rare gems whose monetary value held no interest for her but the structure of such jewels did. To say she was odd would be to put it mildly.

When he explained that he had returned to train them and made it appear that it was an almost dire emergency that he do so, Lorna sighed. “God, you sound so much like Cable now,” she said before she could stop herself. But in all honesty, he did. She was going to stand up and leave if he decided to go on about how the world was in jeopardy and only the X-Men could save them. She'd received that lecture already.

“So, you are going to be training the students...” she muttered mostly to herself before making up her mind. Green eyes looked from the table before them into the shining blue of the white haired man across from her and she asked, almost hesitantly, “Would you be interested in helping me with mine?”

Her stomach sank as she asked the question that she probably shouldn't have. All of Amara's warnings came flooding back but she knew she had to do this. Right?

[magneto]

Erik played with that ball of metal that was now floating in the air. He just looked at the shiny silver body with no interest in silence while listening to this young lady. He always felt the need to practice every day with his powers and submit himself to a strict training, he did not want ... rust, he was the master of magnetism and pretended to be forever. But Erik was feeling uncomfortable talking about his son and daughter , about missing children and to many years in which he did not know anything about them. He did not want to remember, he wanted to leave behind the past. His siblings do not bother to go look for him. Erik Lehnsherr had no family, he was alone and had always been, no people on his side that trust.

"So if geology as you like, I encourage you to study. If you have any problems with this, ask for help from Charles or myself. But all this talk and you do not tell me your name, young lady " Erik smiled slightly without looking at the girl while with a hand movement that transformed metal ball on what had been before, in a delicate silver fork, he played with the atoms at will. "Cable, who is that man ?.. I hope he is as charming as me". Said with irony. "Yes, I'm going to train young inexperienced students, psychology classes as well" .But he did not expect that she should ask him to help her with her powers. "May I help you with your powers, young lady?. Your magnetic powers?". Erik's smile was getting thinner. "Oh yes, I feel your power until the last pore of my skin. You know who I am. So that I can help you ... you have to trust me. " Erik's blue eyes shone with intensity, fork left to float in the air to fall back on the table. "But it is very difficult, right? "

[lorna]

Talk of his children seemed to agitate him a bit so Lorna decided to drop it. In all honesty, she didn't blame him, especially if he wasn't around for their upbringing. She supposed that becoming the world's most renowned mutant terrorist had taken precedence over raising Pietro and Wanda. It was thought of with a bit of bitterness and she was thankful that he wasn't also a telepath. She'd likely be a pile of smoldering ash if he'd caught wind of that thought.

She merely nodded as he encouraged her to study hard to gain progress in her chosen field. She knew that, had already finished up her undergraduate degree and was currently working on her masters. As soon as it was complete, she planned on searching out a job and then going back to complete the doctorate. Lorna didn't do things halfway and college was just a testament to that.

When he asked her name, she realized that he was right. She'd never introduced herself. With a small smile, she replied, “I'm Lorna Dane.” It wasn't until she said her last name that it dawned on her that if he was her biological father, he might remember her mother's name. She hoped that either Cable was wrong or he'd never been interested in knowing her mother that well. Which was creepy but oh well...

Speaking of..."Cable, who is that man ?.. I hope he is as charming as me".

Lorna couldn't help the small smirk that appeared when he asked if Cable was charming. Charming was about the last word she would use to describe him. “Oh, he was so charming that he almost ended up in a Central Park pond,” she replied, her lips twitching in amusement. “He also said that it was time to gather, to hone our powers, etc, etc. I took a rather quick dislike for the man.”

Then she finally bit the bullet and asked him for help with her own powers. She didn't want to, hated the idea of subjecting herself to him of all people. She hated Cable as well for even placing the idea in her head. However, Lorna was headstrong and stubborn. She knew what she had to do and she was willing to do it at any cost.

Almost. As soon as he asked for her trust, Lorna knew she couldn't afford him.

She watched him for a long moment, not answering, just examining. He looked rather benevolent just sitting in their dining room, playing with the silverware and eating their fruit. But he was in actuality quite dangerous, perhaps the most dangerous man who'd ever lived. And he wanted her to trust him.

“I think you asking the impossible, Magneto,” she began, her voice soft and her eyes never leaving his. “You are my best hope, with that one thing I agree with Cable on. But I don't think I can trust you. You have too many secrets, you manipulate people and use them as tools to get what you want. I don't want to be a tool.” She spoke with clarity and honesty. Lorna doubted if she'd ever trust the man.

[magneto]

"I've had a fairly long life. A life which I would not wish on anyone, just to be different. My children left me and my wife died, fought against the Nazis and I was a prisoner in a concentration camp" He rubbed his arm where he had those numbers tattooed. He spent a little smile to the young woman. "A pleasure Miss Dane. Now we are on an equal footing." He recalled the name of Dane in the distance but could not place it in mind, a name that was in the distant past.

The way in which she spoke of that gentleman called Erik Cable brought in a small laugh. "I see that this gentleman is not your sympathy. You mind?". She asked, drawing from his coat pocket a cigarrete pack and an expensive gold lighter.

"Ah, to unite all our powers to fine tune. Girl, I have 65 years old and I am assure you that I have powers that most refined gentleman named Cable. A horrible name if I have to say and a bit arrogant . But I should not say this, many mutants of the new generation are really arrogant" .Magneto amused himself playing with one silver fork which transformed it into a ball of molten metal. "Charles is going to kill me if he sees me doing this. I'm messing up the expensive cutlery Xavier family." A joke played about his lips. "Then, my lady. If you do not trust me, I can not be your teacher. It's impossible. I give class to students who trust me completely. I do not use people, they come to me because they need help with their powers, most of them young with magnetic powers, as you."...

[lorna]

It was rather ironic that it took that long in the conversation for Magneto to even wonder about her name. She realized that to him, she was likely someone so very insignificant and if only she could stay that way, stay under his radar, then Lorna would have been quite happy. As it was, though, she couldn't. Not if she wanted to ask him for his help.

Damn Cable for putting the idea in her head to begin with.

She shrugged nonchalantly when he asked if she minded if he smoked. If he really felt like coating his lungs with nicotine and bringing on death that much sooner, Lorna wasn't about to stop him. Or argue with him. Who was she to tell the great and might Magneto what to do, right?

“Arrogant is definitely one way to describe him,” she replied, more to herself then to him. Although he didn't seem all that young to her, Lorna figured that anyone under the age of fifty was considered young to Magneto. Just what had her mother been thinking...whoa, so not going there. Not now, not ever and she most definitely wasn't about to ask him that question.

“Somehow,” she started as he played with the fork, “I doubt that Charles would kill you. He hasn't yet, has he?” She meant it rhetorically. She was well aware of Xavier's “no kill” policy as she'd lived there for a few years now and had trained with the X-Men.

Her green eyes were on his own blue ones as he told her that he couldn't accept her as a pupil unless she trusted him. And they were at a standstill. After all he'd done to them, to the world, he was asking her to trust him like he was innocent of all the crimes he'd committed. She still wasn't buying it. As young as she was, Lorna was rather pessimistic about things and Magneto's apparent new leaf was one of those things.

She stood up as he rejected her request. As far as Lorna could tell, there was nothing more to be said. He couldn't train her unless she trusted him. She couldn't trust him to keep his word. They were at an impasse and she wasn't about to throw her own morals away just to become more like him, power wise.

After stacking her books on the table in front of her, she looked at him again and said, “I think it would take a lifetime for me to trust you not to go back on your word. I trust you far enough to be able to help me but that is all. If I am a waste of your time, then I would say we are done, Magneto. Good night.”