Work Text:
Charles was humming to himself as he looked through a few interesting looking records. His mother had insisted that they go into town together when she visited her friends, but all they were doing was having tea and it was so boring. He didn't want to stay, so he'd told his mother he was going across the street to look at records and she'd told him that was just fine, just like he wanted her too. Now, Charles was flipping through disks of artists he'd never even heard of before, idly wondering how many he would be able to go get with the change he had in his pocket when—
Mama! Mama, where are you!
Charles nearly stumbled back at the strong mental projection. Shaking his head, he tried his very best to get rid of the echoing thoughts that were still bouncing about his mind, trying to press against where they were coming from and make them quieter. Charles imagined brick walls surrounding his thoughts and tried his very best to get them as strong as possible so the despair wasn’t so loud. Focusing on the mental voice he'd just heard, it only took Charles a moment to catch onto the thought pattern of what turned out to be a young boy.
The boy, whose name turned out to be Erik Lehnsherr, was huddled down between two record stands and curled in on himself. His mind was crying out loudly for his mother, and when Charles finally found him, he was crying as well. For a moment Charles wasn't sure what to do; he could leave, and not worry about the little boy again, or he could calm his mind so he was done crying, or, he could try to help. After a moment of thought, Charles nodded to himself and decided that helping would be the best idea.
“Oh, hello,” Charles greeted quietly, crouching down so he and the other boy were on eye level. Charles knew that the other boy was two years older than him from a memory of him blowing out a birthday candle shaped like the letter ten but he looked very young with tears tracking down his face.
Erik looked up at him and sniffled. He looked so upset that Charles found his chest feeling a bit tight, even if he usually wasn't bothered when others cried. Maybe it was because Erik's mind felt very nice, even if he was distressed. “W-who are you?” the boy asked him shakily, and because Charles was already partly in his mind, he felt it when Erik's thoughts light up with an awareness of every bit of metal Charles was wearing.
Oh, how amazing, Charles thought, only to himself as a smile curled up his lips until he was smiling so widely that his cheeks ached.
“My name is Charles,” he told him kindly, keeping his voice quiet, “and I was just looking at records when I saw you over here all alone.”
“Oh,” Erik breathed out, his arms wrapping even tighter around his knees where they were pulled up against his chest. “What do you want?”
“To help you, if you'll allow me,” Charles told him kindly, wanting to reach out and touch him but getting the feeling that Erik wouldn't like that.
Erik stared at him, eyes like steel, as his brain whirled. Charles didn't focus too strongly on his thoughts, getting the feeling that Erik was going to agree no matter what, if only because his mind was still screaming in fear at being separated from his family. Charles would imagine that could be scary for someone who wasn't very used to being alone like he was, so he did his best to smile nicely as the boy thought over Charles’ words and pondered his offer.
“I c-can't find my Mama,” Erik told him shakily after some time, his hands wringing together nervously. Charles knew he was worried about talking to a stranger because his mama always told him not to, but Charles was very young and it made Erik feel safer. That was good, because Charles really wanted to help him, even if he really wasn’t sure why.
“Oh, that's alright, I can help you find her if you'd like,” Charles offered, smiling gently when the boy gasped and looked up at him with very wide eyes.
“Really! How?” Erik's eyes were glittering with interest. They were much prettier than when they'd been filled with tears. His brain light up happily at the prospect of having someone to help him find his mama.
Charles felt his smile grow even wider when he gently pressed his consciousness into Erik's mind. Erik had the most receptive mind he'd ever touched, allowing him in like a damn opening up to a river. Charles' consciousness flowed into Erik's and filled his thoughts in a way Charles had never experienced before. He gasped at the way he was feeling so full of Erik and his thoughts, immersing himself selfishly in his cool thoughts.
Slowly, Charles took a deep breath that expanded his chest as his smile grew and grew until his cheeks ached and he was smiling wider than he'd ever smiled in his entire life. You're not the only one with special talents, my friend.
Erik grinned right back.