@ofpolarity
The mood around the mansion was something inexplicable; putting it into words was quite frankly impossible. For Erik it was strange on a whole multitude of levels. Being back at the institute, once again roaming the halls that he’s known for so long, and now without the one person who was supposed to be there-- nothing felt right. Nothing was right, for that matter.
Magneto wasn’t exactly a popular name around the school, but he chose not to return back to his own base. The lines of division between groups who normally did not see eye to eye were still blurred, so he took advantage of that fact. Their species had been weakened, fractured apart, and now they all had to learn to adjust. That struggle stretched across all groups and ideologies, and it did not listen to invisible boundaries between the individuals taking refuge in these walls. Erik felt that his place was here-- but for how long, he was not sure.
Putting aside the consideration of mutants as a whole, Erik had selfish reasons for staying. Lorna was here, and she was still recovering. He couldn’t leave her.
It was common knowledge that he and his daughter never quite clicked. They both had their demons, and Erik knew that a huge part of Lorna’s hurt was his fault. For so long he tried to push that fact aside and do anything he could to simply get her on his side. Perhaps that greed was still in him, but it wasn’t controlling him any longer. Lorna truly was important to him, and recently he began to give in to the idea that he wanted her around because his heart wanted it, plain and simple. That was a dangerous game to play, but he couldn’t fight it.
Emotions ran deep inside him. They were both his strength and his weakness, and when it came to the people he loved it became explosive. With Charles gone and Lorna healing, Erik was exhausted. He barely left Lorna’s side, as he himself needing to recover right along with her. He did his best when they went head to head with their abilities, but he knew that she had every right to hate him after everything she had been through. But that didn’t matter. All that mattered was that she was safe now and hopefully on the path to recovery.
If anyone went looking for him, their best bet would be to look to Lorna. He snagged a few books from around the mansion to keep himself busy and kept them next to Lorna’s bed-- that was more than enough. At the moment however, he was asleep. One hand limply held a book open in his lap while the other was propped up against the bedside table to keep him upright as he slept. It was quiet and relatively peaceful in their little bubble, which was exactly what he needed while he waited for his daughter to wake up.











