Cosmic Kiss

Charles sat next to Armando in nervous silence. They’d had a long talk about what they knew of the Federation based on their relationships with its representatives. It was precious little.

He hadn’t realized at the time how little Erik was telling him about the Federation and how much he was simply sharing his own past. It was odd yet flattering to think that such a reticent man trusted him so implicitly and on such brief acquaintance.

Armando had fared no better in his dealings with Captain Summers, “We can talk for hours, I feel like I know him. I trust him, he’s a good man.” He confided in Charles softly. “He’s told me about his parents and his brothers, and the things they sued to get up to as kids. He told me about joining the military and how hard he worked to become captain of his own ship-especially in the northern Fleet. Apparently the Admiral doesn’t suffer fools lightly,” he quirked his lips at Charles as he said that last bit.

Charles had to agree with that assessment. “He really doesn’t. You saw how he treated the other agents who were assigned to us on our trip.” Charles referenced the Admiral’s habit of ignoring them and refusing to allow them to do their job by ducking them whenever he pleased and frying their equipment on a consistent basis.

Armando frowned as he remembered that, “he’s always treated our team better. Maybe Sean was onto something when he said you matter to him. Not all of us,” he was beginning to look concerned again and Charles desperately wanted to reassure him that wasn’t the case.

~~

He remembered one of their many rambling walks through the ancient city of Rome. He’d have been hopelessly lost a few turns from the hotel, but Erik never lost his way. They had been walking along, enjoying the warm weather and the chatter of Italian all around them and he’d looked at Erik’s stern profile to see a certain sense of contentment playing around the edges of his mouth.

Then Charles had somehow found himself on opposite teams to the Admiral as he and Erik engaged in a rollicking game of street soccer with a group of children whose antics had caught their attention.

He was lithe and athletic and somehow spoke all the major languages on Earth- a fact which came in hand on more than one occasion as they traveled the world. The kids loved him and begged them not to leave. He could tell that Erik was surprised by their open acceptance of him; he seemed almost bashful about it.

Charles had been hopelessly charmed by the scene and had gotten Erik to ask them the best place to buy gelato in the city.

And so a small herd of children guided them to a small restaurant set into the side of an ancient villa turned office complex.  Charles laughed at the look on Erik’s face as Charles had knelt to allow one of the smallest boys to climb on his back for a piggy back ride. After Erik had translated with a blank look that Charles had come to interpret as confusion.

“That one wants to ride on my shoulders?” Erik had asked after simply observing Charles passenger kick at his sides eagerly and demand he pick up the pace in imperious Italian.

“Just set him on your shoulders and expect him to pull your ears and hair,” Charles said with a sappy grin. Of all things he hadn’t expected the Admiral to be good with kids.

It was a good look.

Erik had gingerly set his hands around the boy’s waist like he was terrified he would shatter at the lightest pressure. He had lifted him and set him on his shoulders, letting him cling to his hair and kick his chest with his heels. The other kids cheered and hustled them along the narrow alleyways and winding hills of their small neighborhood.

Charles had bought them all a cold treat for their exertions. And had laughed at the open wonder Erik showed as the sweet cream melted on his tongue, “It may be more like a shake for you,” he laughed, referencing the Admirals higher body temperature.

Then his heart skipped a beat as Erik had let one of their newfound friends sit on his lap to eat her own strawberry flavored confection, happily swinging her feet and chattering on about silly things as she slowly worked her way through a small scoop, managing to get herself, the table and Erik rather sticky in the process.

Erik hadn’t voiced a word of complaint and had watched blankly as Charles had wet a napkin and wiped her face and hands before letting her run off to get into trouble with her friends on their sugar high.

“How was dessert?” he’d asked as Erik led them back to their hotel and their assigned agents who they’d lost hours before their pickup game.

“Delicious, very sweet,” he glanced at Charles to see his approval of his use of the word. “Very…soft and smooth. Flavorful and cold. It was nice after the game, you and the kids were over heated,” he frowned at the recollection of their flushed cheeks and sweat damp hair. He would never understand how humans were still alive when they couldn’t appropriately regulate their body temperature.

Charles had laughed and bumped arms with him companionably, “I’m glad you liked it. Gelato is one of my favorite treats. I my opinion, it’s the best ice cream there is.”

Erik had smiled at that, “How many kinds of ice cream are there?”

Charles had sighed playfully, pretending to be irritated by Erik’s curiosity. “You’re going to make me fat if you keep this up.”

~~

He couldn’t help but remember how sweet Erik had been to the kids, and how much he’d enjoyed people watching in each city they visited. Charles could admit that the Admiral gave him preferential treatment, but he had no doubt that their journey had left Erik with a real love of Earth and its inhabitants.

“He cares for us all, Armando. You can’t tell me that you don’t trust Captain Summers even if you don’t trust the Federation. It’s the same thing; they’re individuals just like we are. Trust me; the Admiral has placed the Earth under his personal protection. He’s a good man.”

Armando had given him a long, level look. “You’d do well to remember he’s not a man. He may look like one, but he isn’t one.”

Charles had been nettled by that, “Is that what you have to remind yourself of when you’re having ‘friendly talks’ with the handsome captain?” he jibbed sourly.

Armando had looked affronted before the melting into resignation, “Yes, actually. It is. Sean and Moira may be right. What are we doing here, Charles? Are we being tricked into betraying our own kind? They seem like good guys and they’ve certainly made the world a better place, but that doesn’t mean they’re trustworthy. For all we know they plan to enslave us or eat us or lord knows what. This could all be a shadow game that we’ve played right into.” He said, concerned.

Charles knew he was right, but he hated to admit it. “We’ll find out when we go up, don’t give up hope. Without that we have nothing.”

Before Armando could answer, Moira walked in, lips pursed forehead creased with worry, eyes bright with censure. “It’s time.”

They stood quickly. “They’re here?” Armando asked, hiding his nerves as best he could.

Moira nodded, lips thin with worry, “Yes.”

Just then, Admiral Lehnsherr and Captain Summers stepped into the room. They looked entirely blank. Charles felt his heart nearly burst out of his chest at the sight of Erik after their brief separation.

He was an undeniably gorgeous man.

The officers made their way over to their human counterparts.

“We’ll be teleporting. Here,” Erik said quietly, offering his arm for Charles to grasp. His eyes drank in the sight of his mate’s smaller form. The time apart had been untenable and he was relieved that it was over.

Charles linked their arms and stepped close to his side as Armando did the same with Captain Summers.

“Ready?” Erik asked, waiting for Charles to nod his agreement.

“Yes,” he said more excited than nervous. Then there was a strange bubbling sensation in his blood and they were standing on the bridge of a spaceship.

Charles gaped about at the men stationed around the bridge. There were similarities between some, but most of them had radical physical differences from anything Charles had ever seen.

The bridge was a perfect circle done up in gray and dark red to match the uniforms all the officers wore. He couldn’t make heads or tails of the technology surrounding him.

“Where is Armando?” he asked after glancing around again, trepidation creeping into his tone.

“On earth for a few more minutes. I promised you’d be the first human onboard didn’t I?” he said with a small, playful smile.

Charles couldn’t hide his pleased grin, “Thank you.”

Erik placed his hand over Charles’ where it was still nestled in the crook of his arm, “come let me show you to the chambers so you can get settled in.” He led the way, listening to Charles ramble on asking questions and making clever observations. With his mate by his side, everything was right with the universe.

~~

Charles walked around the massive living quarters that the admiral had shown him to. There was a seating area, soft flooring and levitating panels that he supposed served as tables.

It was futuristic for lack of a better term.

“Here,” Erik took his hand gently and pressed his palm to a small screed barely larger than his hand. It chimed after a second, ~Welcome Dr. Xavier~

He had startled at that, “I already programmed it with your information; it just needed your biorhythms to add you to our system.”

Charles had been stunned by the ship’s AI knowing him and the Admirals nearness after their brief separation. He tried to drum up the courage to bring their lips together in small kiss, but let the moment pass as Erik began to show him how the gadget worked.

“You can change the density, texture, color, hardness and softness of any surface in the room,” Erik said nervously, not wanting to overwhelm his mate.

Charles had been taken aback by the unrelieved eggshell white of everything, but with a few taps of the thin device he was standing in a room with pale blue walls, a hardwood floor with matching countertops, and dark brown leather furniture.

His mouth dropped open in shock. Erik smiled at his reaction; he’d known Charles would love it. He wanted to wow him as he showed him around his new home.

“Erik, this is amazing!”

He had walked further into the room, running his hands over the walls, and furniture in appreciation.

“And here is how you open the window,”

“What?” Charles had turned to him in shock, not sure what to make of that statement, after all, they were deep in the void of space, well out of Earth’s atmosphere.

Erik enjoyed the moment as Charles looked at him, framed by the Earth’s massive moon just behind him.

“Turn around,” he said softly Charles did, only to stumble back in surprise, “Erik, how?” he raised his hand and pressed it flat against a smooth surface the exact temperature of the room. It showed no reflection back to him of the room or its inhabitants so he startled when hot, firm hands closed gently around his shoulders.

He turned to face Erik, only to find him watching him with those pale, inscrutable eyes shifting to light amber as he gazed down at him. He had so many questions about all that he’d already seen, but at that moment, the only thing he could think of was kissing the man he’d fallen for.

Charles placed one hand on the Admiral’s shoulder and the other on the back of his neck to guide him down into a soft, chaste kiss. Heat swept through his body at the small contact and he gasped against thin, stern lips that moved gently against his mouth.

He pulled back after a long moment to gauge Erik’s reaction. He looked stunned but happy and allowed Charles to pull him into a slightly longer embrace. He wound his arms around Erik’s neck and nestled his fingers into his short hair with a pleased sigh.

“Erik. I missed you.”

~~

Erik was in shock. Of course over the course of their journey they’d had many conversations about human customs so he knew what a honey moon was, but he never suspected his mate would want to initiate intercourse so soon in their relationship.

Of course sex was an integral aspect of human mating behavior so he shouldn’t have been as surprised as he was.

“Charles,” he murmured against his full, cool lips. “You want this?” he had to be sure, this was a major step in their bonding and not something that could be undone. The noble part of him wanted to make sure they weren’t rushing into things, but the base part of him wanted to bind Charles to him for the rest of their lives, the sooner the better.

Charles stepped back, looking anxious, “don’t you? It’s fine if you don’t I-“

Erik cut him off before his rambling ruined the moment, “I have always wanted you, Charles. From the first time I heard you speak.” He ran a smooth hand over the curve of Charles’ cheek like he was something precious.

Alarm bells went off in Charles’ head. Was that what their whole trip had been about? Wooing him? Not getting to know Earth? he felt trepidation tremble through him until Erik said, “You were right about everything you said. Earth is wonderful. The people, the plants and animals, even the bacteria is a study in the pure wonder of biology.”

Its precious to me because it’s all related to you.  He didn’t say. Without earth and all its wonders there would be no you.

Charles was thrilled that his plan had worked; he couldn’t wait to tell Moira and the rest of the team that Erik valued them all. It was a huge weight off his shoulders that Earth was under the personal protection of this wonderful man.

“Yes, I want this Erik. I want to be with you,” he said confidently, worries pushed aside. They had time to discuss all the rest, but for now he wanted to celebrate their love physically. He’d been desperate for Erik’s touch for weeks, and now that he had it he wasn’t going to let the opportunity slip away.

Erik smiled his broad Earth grin and gently tugged Charles towards the wall, as they approached, a panel opened leading to another large room all done in white with more small platforms at various intervals.

Erik quickly tapped out a beautiful bedchamber with thick cream carpeting and pale green walls with gold accents. The side tables were done in weathered white wood and matched the four posters of the massive canopy bed that dominated nearly a full wall of the large room.

Charles was impressed and touched that Erik had clearly been paying attention to his likes and dislikes. He couldn’t have made a more perfect room for himself if he tried.

“Erik, its lovely.” He said softly, eyes glowing in the low light of the room.

Erik was happier than he could ever remember being, “I’m glad you like it, Charles. I want you to be happy here,” he gently pulled the smaller man into careful embrace, always mindful of the strength difference between them.

Charles ignored the red flag that sent up in favor of leading Erik to perch on the edge of the bed so they were of a height to one another.  He stepped between his spread thighs and placed his palms on Erik’s smooth jaw.

“I’d like to show you that kissing you were so keen on,” he referenced Erik’s intrigue as they watched Moulin Rouge. At the time it had sent him into a long, embarrassed explanation but Erik had seemed almost relived to learn what it was. He’d never gotten a straight answer as to why that was.

Erik smiled broadly again; thrilled that Charles wanted this just as badly as he did. He wasn’t making his father’s mistakes, they’d be happy together in a way his parents could only dream of.

“Show me.”

They spent long moments tangling tongues and running careful hands over each other wherever they could reach.

By the time Charles pulled away with a gasp he was sprawled across Erik’s strong chest where the other man had fallen back onto the soft surface of the bed. “Are you sure you’ve never done that before?” he asked, voice raspy with desire.

Erik looked affronted at the question and lightly manhandled him to rest against massive pile of pillows at the head of the bed before ranging over the smaller man and caging him in with his body.

“What would you like, Charles?” he asked, glad that the smaller man had given him enough time to prepare for this. They had spent ages kissing, and if he hadn’t felt evidence of Charles’ enjoyment he would have worried that he was boring the other man.

Charles blushed, “Well. I can show you what I like and you can show me what you like. I know we’re very different species so I don’t expect us to…” he faded out as he felt the distinct impression of an erection pressed low against his belly.

He glanced down between them in shock, trying to make sense of -very large- bulge he saw in the Admirals uniform trousers.

“I-what?” he asked stupidly. Though in all fairness, most of his blood wasn’t in his brain at the moment.

“We’re not so very different,” Erik murmured against his cool mouth, loving the temperature contrast on his tongue and lips. He couldn’t wait to have that soft mouth pressed to other areas of his body.

He sat back onto his heels and stripped off his uniform Jacket, trying to accustom himself to the heavy weight straining trousers that weren’t made to contain his current physiology. He preened at the sight of Charles watching him hungrily.

“How did you hide that from me? I thought you had a different reproductive system entirely.” That would make sense. He has no belly button, he’s never been aroused by you before. His brain chimed in logically. Another red flag. “Erik, what’s going on?” he asked, trying not to be as aroused as he was watching the taller man strip off and reveal a massive, entirely human looking cock and balls.

Erik tilted his head and blinked at him in a move that Charles had come to recognize as confusion. It was helplessly endearing.

He felt his heart contract as Erik looked uncertain, “You said you would show me what you like?”

Charles felt like an utter fool. Perhaps the ship being able to change design was based on the physiology of Erik’s people being able to do the same. He had to admit it took some of the wondering out of how exactly this would happen. He had been terrified that at the moment of actual intercourse he would encounter tentacles or viscous goo or something that would be so foreign and horrifying that he’d have to back pedal from physical intimacy with Erik.

“I-well now that you’re. I’d love to have you inside me,” he finally managed to stutter out, relived that Erik seemed to easily able to get back into the mood at a moment’s notice.

“How?” he asked hotly, openly eyeing Charles’ mouth.

“Lots of ways really. But I wanted to show you how to finger me.” Charles blushed, glad that he’d decided to err on the side of positivity and had prepared himself for just this eventuality. Though now they may be able to go beyond fingering.

Erik grinned as his cock gave a hard pulse at the words falling out of his lover’s sexy mouth. “Show me.” He planned on saying that rather a lot in the coming hours and days of Charles’ stay.

“Gladly,” Charles huffed as Erik ranged over him again, pressing his hot body along Charles’ front and gently rutting against his firm thigh with a groan. Charles pushed the rest of his questions and concerns aside and eagerly introduced Erik to human lovemaking.

~~

Later, hours later judging by how sore he was in a very pleasant sense, Erik carried him through another panel hidden off the main room and into a bathroom with a standing shower stall, a toilet, and a deep Jacuzzi tub. The floor was a soft, super absorbent microfiber that felt warm against the soles of his feet when Erik set him down. It was all done in creams and pale gold.

“This is marvelous, Erik he said after Erik had started filling the tub and he’d made use of the facilities. “When did you set this up?”

“While you were sleeping,” he said with a softly look at the other man. They had long ago come to terms with the fact that Erik only needed about 1/3 of the sleep Charles did.

They stepped into the tub to continue cuddling while the water jets soothed their tired muscles. Charles leaned back against the raised wall of the tub, pulling Erik to recline back on his chest.

He ran his hands over the smooth, slim plane of his lover’s torso, feeling his hearts vibrate under his palms. He couldn't wait to get to the labs and see the wonders they offered.

H glanced down at the now flaccid cock resting against Erik’s thigh and felt a smug sense of pride that he’d worn the other man out with their exertions. Erik had taken to love making with a fierce desire that Charles had enjoyed stoking in the taller man.

“Is that going to go away again?” he asked languidly, resting his cheek against Erik’s smooth, prickly hair.

“No, it’s permanent. You can make use of it whenever you like,” Erik said cheekily, running his dexterous fingers over Charles’ legs to make him wriggle.

“What? How is that?” Charles asked, confused. The red flags were all back with a vengeance by the time Erik tilted his head back to look at him.

“Since you’re now my mate my physiology will remain compatible with yours for the rest of our lives,” he explained slowly, as though he was the one who was confused.

“What? When did we become mates?!” Charles demanded, shocked. “Is that what sex means to you? To your people?”

He rather suspected he needed to warn Armando if it wasn’t already too late.

“Well, the mating is now complete. Full intercourse wasn’t required for that, but it is the fastest way to seal a permanent bond,” Erik was baffled by the emotions flickering so rapidly over his mates face. He simply couldn’t keep up with whatever Charles was relaying.

“So. Wait. What? How many mates do you have?” Charles demanded shakily, wondering if he was now a part of some intergalactic harem.

Erik was deeply offended, “One. You.”

Charles wasn’t sure if he was relieved to hear that. Though he supposed it made sense if Erik had permanently changed his body to be with him.

“Are you going to take more human mates?” Charles asked, mind whirring with this new information.

“No. We only take one mate in our lives,” Erik said tersely.

Charles was silent for a long, long time.Trying to work out everything he had just learned. That had been Erik's first time. Erik was his mate. Erik had wanted him from the day of the surrender.

There was something he needed to know. “Admiral. If I hadn’t initiated intercourse, would we still be mates?” he asked, terrified of the answer.

Erik frowned deeply, “Yes. You agreed to become my mate at the Smoke that Thunders.”

“What! When?! How?!” Charles was legitimately baffled.

“You engaged in intimacy, very publicly I might add,” Erik said stiffly, wondering if his mate was going to attempt to reject their bond. He had some bad news for Charles if that’s what was happening here.

“Intimacy?” Charles asked faintly.

“This,” Erik raised his hand to press against Charles’ brow lightly.

“Touching your face?” he felt a little breathless by now.

Erik frowned, “Yes, of course.”

Of course.

Charles tried to stay calm, this wasn’t just about him. This could very well affect Earths relationship with the Federation. He took a trembling breath, “I think it’s time for you to tell me what being a mate means. And why you’re actually here.”

Erik nodded. There could be no harm in it now; Charles was his for life regardless of his feelings on the matter he thought bitterly. Worried that he’d made his father’s mistakes even after all he’d done to avoid them.