Closure

Title: Closure
Author: Anonymous
Pairing: Erik/Charles
Rating: PG

Written for the prompt: "I just want a short or long story about Erik finding out (maybe from Raven) how much pain Charles went through when Erik killed Shaw with their minds still connected. Charles had to HOLD Shaw still for the entire time while the coin went through, even though he knew Eric was going to kill Shaw against his wishes. That takes a lot of love and dedication. Please someone fill this, I really want something romantic and moving. I want Erik to realize how much love Charles has for him even though he didn't go with him and won't chase him down."

When I saw this prompt I went OMG YES, because - not that I know anything about telepathy - but there was always the possibility (or certainty? Again, I don't know anything about telepathy) that Charles felt Shaw die (and Raven brings up a good point about Shaw bartering with Charles for his life), and it must've been devastatingly painful, not just physically but for the fact that Erik did end up going through and killing Shaw.. and yet he still held Shaw until Erik finished the agonizingly slow task of carving through Shaw's brain. That had to take something more than just "I need to stop the bad guy from killing Erik," because, well... he needed to stop the bad guy from killing Erik. Raven's insight is amazing, and this entire piece just ripped my heart into pieces. So good.