@lifeincarncte
The cause of mutant rights had always been one near to T’Challa’s heart. Perhaps this was inspired by his relationship with Ororo, but he liked to believe he would fight for mutantkind regardless of whether or not he knew any personally. After all, he knew what it was to be looked down on for the way you were born, had had students in America speak down to him as if he was not a king. It was not something he would ever wish upon anyone, and he certainly wouldn’t wish it on anyone as kind as the X-Men as a whole. T’Challa could not pretend to understand the struggle that mutants faced personally, but he could do his part to fight against it. He could throw his financial and political influence into charities, could fight for mutant rights with everything he had.
What he could not do, however, was speak for them.
When he’d realized his charity had needed a voice, someone who understood the struggle of mutants on a personal level, he had first considered Ororo. She was, after all, the mutant he was closest to, and it would make sense to offer her the place as such. But Ororo did so much for him already, helped him with mutants in his own country that couldn’t control what they could do, and the position would not be an easy one. Instead, he found himself turning to someone she trusted, someone who had earned his trust by extension. Jean Grey, Ororo assured him, was a good woman, and she would do good things for T’Challa’s charity. From what he’d seen of her so far, he had no doubt of that.
He glanced up as the door to the cafe he sat in swung open, getting to his feet as Jean made her way over to his table. “Ms. Grey,” he greeted fondly, a warm smile present on his face. “I am glad you could join me here today. Sit, I’ve heard good things about this restaurant. Apparently their scones are, uh... ‘to die for,’ was the phrase used I believe.” It was one of Johnny’s favorites, and while the youngest member of the Fantastic Four could be a bit more impulsive than his teammates, he always seemed to know the best places to eat.
