[backdated to March]

[markedformore]

It's taken Erik some time to come to the conclusion that he has been avoiding The Subject. He's drawing close to a year's time on the island and with the momentary lapse in December, he's not been able to feel the calming presence of metal, has been unable to control the magnetic fields around him with little more than a simple thought. Rage and serenity matter little when placed in such a situation and it draws on each and every day.

Today, he feels just as powerless as all the rest, which is partially what drives him to the lab in search of someone who likely has the answers for the questions Erik has yet to ask. He sets aside his wariness at hearing an answer he won't like and makes time to visit Hank, bringing nothing to create small talk between them. He's given his blood, he's waited, and now he wants to know what he hasn't been asking.

"Are you busy?" he demands, upon seeing Hank inside the laboratory.

Comments

[two_natures]

From where he's perched over a microscope, Hank immediately recognizes Erik's voice, but doesn't look up at him immediately. While the work he's doing is only a dry run for more important tasks, he's still engrossed in it, all the same.

"Yes," he replies, and looks away from his slide just long enough to jot a few notes down on a nearby piece of paper, "but I can do two things at once."

[markedformore]

Erik narrows his eyes for the briefest of moments, recalling a time when his presence would cause enough fear that the attention was immediately upon him. Then, when you built up a reputation steadily of a man to be feared, that would happen. Here, he's done nothing but live and there's nothing fearful to that, whatsoever. "I gave you my blood a number of months ago," he notes, regarding Hank with an unflinching gaze. "I've come to discuss your studies."

[two_natures]

Hank thinks it feels like it's been much longer than just a few months since then, what with how much has happened since then, both research-related and not. But ee spent the first few months of his stay doing little else besides pouring over mutant blood samples-- his, the Professor's and Erik's-- and sometimes he thinks he could recall entire protein sequences from memory.

He finally looks up from his notes, a thoughtful look on his face. "Okay, what do you want to know about them?" he asks.

[markedformore]

"Why can't I move metal?" he demands, instantly. "Why can't I feel the earth's magnetism around me?" Nothing should have changed. In fact, he feels as though he ought to be stronger, given the parts of him that Charles had unlocked. He should be able to spin the world on its axis, and yet, here he stands, without the ability to float a simple coin -- as simple as the one kept constantly in his pocket. "What does my blood tell you?"

[two_natures]

Hank is aware that Erik is knowledgeable in a number of subjects, but that biology and genetics aren't really among them.

"There's something about this place," Hank starts, "I'm not sure if there's perhaps undetectable radiation, but... the gene that controls mutation isn't active here. Not in your DNA, mine or Professor Xavier's."

And he suspects others on the island who had been also been mutants where they come from are the same, but he hasn't gone about acquiring a larger pool of samples.

[markedformore]

"Back home, you were working on a serum in order to foolishly counter visible mutations," he says, not bothering to hide the fact that he thought such an endeavour impractical, immature, and stupid. Still, he needs Hank to explain this as he doesn't wish to get into an argument with Charles again on the subject. "Could you do something like that, here? Rather than isolate a marker to make you look normal, could you develop something to accelerate the gene?"

He refuses to believe Shaw's ideologies. The man was mad, utterly so, and the notion that an atomic weapon could further mutation seemed both terrifying and insane, at once. Then, Erik clings to the notion that Shaw is wrong. If Shaw is wrong, then it gives him hope -- more hope than he deserves, surely.

[two_natures]

"It wasn't foolish," Hank immediately replies, frowning. And not only had it not been foolish, but he had been on the verge of a breakthrough with it. If not for his having been transported to an island where the gene was suppressed, he would have been rid of his deformity once and for all.

[markedformore]

Erik levels a look on Hank that implies he won't be arguing the fallacy of such logic, but he's also not going to press -- and for that, Hank should be grateful. "Hank, a serum," he reminds him, sharper than before. "Is it possible?"

[two_natures]

For a moment, Hank contemplates whether or not to tell Erik about his own pursuits; that he's been holding on to DNA samples from Tony Stonem since his appearance and hasn't quite given up on a new version of his serum yet. But he knows that it was difficult, even when he had an active gene to work with back home.

"I'd need... at the very least, samples from someone with an active gene to even attempt it," Hank replies, "But those aren't exactly easy to find here."

[markedformore]

"What about that odd span of days where people were experiencing new mutations," Erik says, latching onto whatever hope he can find -- if he's a bit desperate (and he is), he tries not to let it show too outwardly. "I hope you took some blood from yourself to compare."

[two_natures]

Hank shakes his head, frowning. Taking samples from himself had been one of his first priorities when he'd woken up that morning.

"Samples from that weekend are useless," he informs Erik, "They all reverted back just as soon as everyone affected that weekend did, unfortunately."

And the weekend itself had hardly been enough time to learn much from the few samples that he had been able to gather.

[markedformore]

Erik bites back a condemnation. It will be useless and it will likely only make Hank feel worse. Though he's unsure why he ought to be kind to his feelings, he doesn't think he'll accomplish anything by being outwardly cruel for the sake of unleashing his anger -- and Hank doesn't deserve it. "So, what are you telling me? That it's hopeless? I'll never move metal again?"

[two_natures]

"That's not what I'm saying," Hank replies with a sigh, because he doesn't believe that's true, not for a moment. The island is too unpredictable for that to be the case.

"I'm saying that right now, it's not a possibility, but the future can't be discounted entirely."

Just because physical changes on the island have been temporary before doesn't mean that'll always be the case. Though, Hank hopes he's not affected again, if it happens.

[markedformore]

Erik takes one moment longer to debate whether he finds this acceptable: he does not. "Then don't stop searching," he says brusquely, giving a nod of his head as confirmation that they're done with this conversation. "And ask Charles for help when you need it."

[two_natures]

"Right," Hank replies with a nod of his own, and while he'll keep Erik's request in mind, restoring mutations isn't exactly where he thinks his work is currently headed.