Charles Xavier as Vicomte de Valmont
Erik Lehnsherr as Marquise de Merteuil
James ‘Logan’ Howlett as Madame de Tourvel
This is a little ficlet I wrote for my darling @widgenstain, who is celebrating a big birthday today!!! I hope you like this, and I hope you’re having a wonderful day :D :D :D
No warnings except for mild internalized homophobia mentioned. Approx. 1300 words. Also this takes place in England not France just because lol.
Edwards appeared as Erik stepped through the parlour doors, having just returned from a brisk walk about the manor grounds.
“Sir, the Viscount is here. Shall I show him in?”
Erik frowned as he stripped his gloves absently, mulling over the plan he’d been weighing these past few days. His pride had been wounded dearly and his patience tested, and Erik was keen to answer Sebastian’s insult with appropriate retribution. But involving the likes of Xavier added potential risk to Erik’s calculated outcome, and he would have to be very careful indeed with the way he presented his proposal.
“Yes. Have him meet me in the library.”
It had been three days since his lover broke the news to him while they were still in bed; that he was newly engaged to the Countess Frost’s young ward, Jean Grey, and soon to be married. Sebastian had brushed off Erik’s indignation with cool amusement, and all the callousness of a man of privilege used to taking – and discarding – as he pleased. The novelty of being a first and only male lover had worn off after a year together, along with his once fascination over Erik’s ability to control and manipulate metal.
No, Erik held no true devotion to Sebastian Shaw, but he was certainly not some frivolous, empty-headed thing either to be tossed aside with no worry or consequences.
By the time he entered the library, Charles had already made himself comfortable, sprawled laconically into his favorite chair before the chess set they frequented. He looked delightfully handsome as always, dressed in a dark waistcoat that highlighted his sharp blue eyes, and a smile that managed to be both utterly charming and filthy in turn.
Of course that was precisely the appeal of Charles Xavier, an unrepentant scoundrel that rather enjoyed his hard earned reputation. And though Erik was reluctantly attracted to the man’s incisive wit and wicked manner – and Charles thrilled at his own hard edges and cold calculations – neither had any true capacity for feelings, nor the inclination to delve beyond the surface of their unorthodox friendship.
“My dear Earl Lehnsherr,” Charles drawled, “I came as soon as you summoned me. Have you come to your senses, hmm? Now that you’ve lost that dreadful bore Sebastian Shaw, will you finally let me take you to bed? Show you exactly how it is to pleasure a man of your…stature?”
Erik laughed. Trust Xavier to offer sex as a social greeting. “You will find it not so easy to garner an invitation to my bed, Xavier.”
Charles shrugged good-naturedly, and took the glass of claret Erik offered with a sly grin. “No indeed it is not, though you can’t fault a fellow for trying.”
He took his usual seat across from Xavier then, and took a slow, pointed sip of his wine. “I have a proposition for you.”
“Oh?” Charles asked with a playful arch of his brow, “is there to be a quest then, to go on? A monster to slay before I’m given your delectable arse as my just reward?”
“Delectable yes,” Erik conceded, returning Charles’ smouldering grin with a wink. “But sadly, mine is not up for the taking. I am referring to the pretty and virginal Jean Grey, the little telepath Sebastian is planning to marry.”
The smile on Charles’ face slipped just a little, before he rolled his eyes and downed the entirety of his glass in one go. “Let me guess. You want me to seduce her and take her to bed as revenge for Shaw’s insult against you. Erik, darling, I expected a more devious plan than to fuck a girl too young and stupid to know better. It’s entirely beneath me to accept a task that lacks any interest or challenge. You wound me.”
Erik rubbed his forehead and sighed. “I would happily gut Sebastian Shaw if I could, Charles, as well you know. But this at least will injure his pride if nothing else, to expect a virgin and get a trollop for a bride. What if I offered you the next two shipments of bordeaux I’m expecting, direct from my vineyard in France? As thanks for your…’assistance’?”
Charles shook his head. “It’s not that I don’t want to help you, darling, but I do have a reputation to uphold. While I don’t deny that Frost’s ward is appealingly lithesome, I’ve had more than my fair share of such delicate flowers. Besides, I’ve recently set my sights on another, much worthier target to pursue.”
In spite of his annoyance at being denied, Erik couldn’t help but be intrigued by Charles’ obvious excitement. As a telepath of great power and little care for decency or morals, Xavier found amusement as quickly as he lost interest within the stifling restrictions of upper English society. To garner such eagerness must mean…“Who is it this time? Which poor, unsuspecting soul have you decided to ruin with your nefarious ways?”
He refilled their glasses, and watched as Charles practically beamed with an almost boyish enthusiasm. “You’ve heard of Captain James Howlett, yes? Newly returned to London, having retired from a decorated career in His Majesty’s army?”
Erik nodded. Howlett was a man of few words, unrefined and definitely unsuited to life amongst the aristocracy. A war hero and a widower, and Erik allowed, an exceptionally fine physical specimen.
“Didn’t he have a wife, Charles? Even you can’t hope to capture the attentions of a man interested only in those of the female persuasion? ”
“Ah but that’s the thing,” Charles answered, eyes drawn to the purple-red liquid as he swirled his glass absently, “I’ve read his mind, Erik, and seen the very heart of him. He desires it so, the touch of a man, but cannot yet admit the truth of it even to himself. It’s buried deep, his longing for a man’s affections, beneath layers upon layers of teachings and propriety and self-loathing. Imagine what a triumph it would be, my friend, to break through all that armor? And make him crave that which he believes to be a mortal sin?”
It was…genius, Erik conceded, and indeed a worthier prey than the inexperienced Jean Grey, though he doubted even the venerable talents of the Viscount could sway a man such as Howlett. “Some things are beyond even your capabilities, Charles, or do you mean to use your telepathy on him? To make him amenable to your advances?”
Charles’ eyes flashed, and his lips thinned a little as he replied, “I have no need to resort to mind tricks. Mark my words, Earl Lehnsherr – I shall have him, and make him beg me for it in turn.”
“And I say that you will not,” Erik teased, thrilling in the way Charles’ eyes narrowed at the obvious challenge. “I shall make you a wager, so certain I am of your failure – if you succeed, I will allow you into my bed, and do to me as you wish for as much and as long as you wish it.”
Charles tossed his head back and laughed. “I will happily take your wager, and be all the more determined with such a promised reward!”
“You will have to provide written proof of the affair,” Erik warned, even as he returned Charles’ triumphant smile with a grin of his own. “In the Captain’s own words or the deal is off.”
“Done,” Charles promised, not even the slightest bit concerned with the additional requirement. He leaned forward and set his hand on Erik’s knee, an impish grin on his face as he asked, “Shall we seal it with a kiss?”
“You shall get your kiss after the wager is won and not a moment before,” he replied, and chuckled as Charles flopped back with an exaggerated sigh. “But it would not hurt to toast your new venture. To you—”
“Who are you?” he asked, as the stranger sat down on the creaky old chair beside his bed.
The man pulled the tags off his neck and gently placed them in his trembling hand. “Logan. This...it’s got my name on it, if you forget.”
He frowned as he looked from the haggard looking man to the object in his hand. Somehow, both the name and the metal reminded him of...something, dancing just beyond the fringes of his memory.
“I don’t...I don’t remember...anything. Why don’t I remember?”
The stranger - Logan - looked sad, but unsurprised at his outburst. Instead of answering his question, he handed him an old, battered photo album and offered, “Let me tell you a story, from a long time ago.
“It was 1962 when Charles Xavier met a fellow mutant by the name of Erik Lehnsherr...”
Charles Xavier and Erik Lehnsherr are the long time faces of Frost & Darkholme, one of the world’s leading brands for high end menswear. Handsome, versatile and oozing with combustible chemistry both in front of and behind the camera, the duo has inspired the best work of their lives from designers and co-owners, Emma Frost and Raven Darkholme.
Now, Emma wants to create a brand new line of casual and underwear for Frost & Darkholme, extending their business beyond suits and tuxedos. As part of this change, she adds two new members to the lineup - Logan Howlett and Ensabah Nur - bringing the exclusive use of Xavier and Lehnsherr to an abrupt end. To add even more fuel to the fire, she pairs each of her stars with one of the new additions - Xavier with Howlett, and Lehnsherr with Nur - forcing them all to adapt and learn to work with new partners in what will be the company’s biggest gamble to date.
But what happens when the sparks almost immediately begin to fly between Xavier and Howlett? Convincing even the cautious Darkholme to support wholeheartedly the new underwear campaign being built around the new duo? And what does Nur whisper into Lehnsherr’s ear, feeding his insecurity and paranoia about his lover’s new ‘relationship’ with Howlett?
After the intense and torrid love affair between lead singer Charles Xavier and bass guitarist Erik Lehnsherr implodes, Lehnsherr defects with keyboard player Raven Darkholme (who happens to be Charles’ sister) to form his own heavy metal band ‘The Brotherhood’. Now Charles is left with a giant hole in their line-up, and a broken heart he tries desperately to fill with a good old fashioned mix of sex, drugs and rock n’ roll.
Luckily for Charles, drummer Hank ‘The Beast’ McCoy knows just the right people to call, recruiting the mercurial Logan Howlett and classically trained Armando Munoz to fill Erik’s and Raven’s shoes. Determined to prove that he’s over the abandonment and betrayal by his former band mates, Charles channels his pain and fury into writing new music for their new band - The X-Men.
Now with a brand new line-up that also includes guitarist Alex Summers and Sean Cassidy on guitar and vocals, The X-Men burn up the charts with their newest single; the rousing, blistering rock anthem ‘I Hate Myself For Loving You’...
