CHAPTER 69: [69] QUACKERS

The Thai food sat steaming on the coffee table, its spicy aroma filling the apartment. Xavier poked at the pad thai on his plate, his stomach already uncomfortably full from the ramen he’d had with Aurora. He forced himself to take another bite anyway, knowing his mother would notice if he didn’t eat.

Across from him, Elaine and Calypso sat side by side, their initial tension seemingly forgotten as they shared spring rolls and conversation. Xavier watched them warily from his position in the armchair, waiting for the other shoe to drop.

"So," Elaine said, dabbing her mouth with a napkin, "has Xavier told you about his childhood obsession with ducks?"

Xavier choked on his noodles. "Mom, no."

"Mom, yes," Elaine countered. "Calypso deserves to know what she’s gotten herself into with this arrangement."

Calypso leaned forward. "Ducks? Do tell."

"When he was four," Elaine began, ignoring Xavier’s groan, "he became convinced that he was part duck. He would only answer to ’Quackers’ for three months."

"That’s not true," Xavier protested.

"Oh, it’s true," Elaine continued, helping herself to more curry. "He would waddle everywhere instead of walking. Even made me sew webbing between his mittens."

Calypso’s laughter rang through the apartment. "Please tell me there are pictures."

"There’s an entire photo album," Elaine assured her. "I’ll bring it next time."

"There won’t be a next time," Xavier muttered, pushing food around his plate.

Elaine ignored him. "Then there was the superhero phase. What was your name again, sweetheart? The Mighty Something?"

Xavier slumped lower in his chair. "The Magnificent X-Man."

"That’s right! He made a cape out of my good red tablecloth and ran around the neighborhood fighting imaginary gate monsters." Elaine’s face softened with the memory. "Mrs. Henderson from down the street still asks about ’that brave little boy’ whenever I see her."

Calypso shot Xavier a sly look. "So you’ve always had a flair for the dramatic, then?"

"Says the woman who spends an hour on her makeup every morning," Xavier countered, straightening up to reach for his water glass.

"It’s not dramatic, it’s art," Calypso sniffed.

Elaine watched this exchange with shrewd eyes. "You two bicker like an old married couple."

"Not even close."

"Mmm-hmm." Elaine clearly didn’t believe him. "Well, distant cousin Calypso should also know about the time Xavier decided he was going to be a chef when he was eight."

Xavier pressed his fingertips to his temples. "Mom, please."

"He made breakfast in bed for me on Mother’s Day," Elaine continued. "Burned toast, raw eggs, and orange juice with about half a cup of salt because he thought the sugar bowl was salt."

"How did you eat it?" Calypso asked, tucking her legs underneath her on the couch.

"Every bite," Elaine said proudly. "He watched me the whole time with those big purple eyes, so eager to please. I spent the rest of the day throwing up, but it was worth it to see how proud he was."

Xavier stared at his plate, a strange tightness in his chest. Had his real mother, if he’d ever had one, looked at him that way? Did she want to?

"Xavier?" Elaine’s voice pulled him back to the present. "Are you alright? You’re quiet."

He looked up to find both women watching him. "Just tired," he said. "Long week at the academy."

"Tell me about your classes," Elaine said, setting her plate aside. "Are you keeping up with the work?"

Xavier seized the change of subject. "It’s challenging, but interesting. Professor Rousseau is eccentric but brilliant. And our practical instructor, Phantom, has been teaching us awareness techniques."

"Phantom..."

"He’s cool," Xavier said. "Wears a mask, very mysterious."

"And there’s Professor Valdez," Calypso added. "She froze part of the training hall on our second day."

"Luna Valdez." Elaine shook her head. "That woman always did have a temper. I treated her once after the Cascade Incident."

Xavier leaned forward. "You treated her? You never mentioned that."

"There’s a lot I don’t mention about my work," Elaine said. "Patient confidentiality. But Luna’s case was public knowledge. She had severe frostbite despite being an ice-type herself. Said she’d pushed her abilities too far trying to save her team."

"What else do you know about her?" Xavier asked.

"Only that she was one of the best. Part of the Blizzard Squad that cleared more gates in a year than most teams manage in five." Elaine tilted her head. "Why the interest?"

"Just trying to understand our teacher," Xavier said, leaning back in his chair. "She’s hard to read."

"She lost everyone she cared about in a single day," Elaine said quietly. "That changes a person."

The room fell silent for a moment, the only sound the hum of the apartment’s climate control system. Xavier thought of his own past life—the people he’d known, the connections he’d avoided making. The way he’d died alone, with no one to mourn him but a woman he’d been using for a job.

Calypso broke the silence. "Xavier has been teaching me how to fight. I’m not very good yet."

"You’re learning," Xavier said. "Your form is improving."

Elaine looked between them. "Well, I’m glad you’re looking out for each other. It’s important to have someone you can trust at the academy. Hunter training can be brutal."

"We’ve noticed," Xavier said dryly.

"Which reminds me," Elaine set her empty plate on the coffee table and fixed Xavier with a serious look. "I brought some supplies for you. Medical supplies."

"Mom, I’m fine—"

"Hunters always think they’re fine until they’re not," Elaine cut him off. "I’ve patched up enough of you to know. I brought proper bandages, antiseptic, pain relievers, and some specialty items for Essentia-related injuries."

"Thank you, Ms. Valentine," Calypso said. "That’s very thoughtful."

"Elaine, please," she corrected. "And it’s not thoughtfulness, it’s practicality. Xavier never tells me when he’s hurt."

Xavier shifted in his chair. "That’s not true."

"No?" Elaine raised an eyebrow. "What about the time you broke your arm climbing that tree in the park and tried to convince me it was ’just a scratch’? Or when you got that concussion during your first MMA training session and didn’t tell me for three days?"

Xavier had no memory of either incident, but they sounded like something he would do. "I don’t like worrying you."

"And I don’t like finding out my son is injured after the fact," Elaine countered. "Promise me you’ll use the supplies I brought if you need them."

"I promise," Xavier said, meeting her gaze.

Elaine nodded, satisfied. "Good. Now, who wants dessert?"

Xavier’s stomach protested at the thought of more food, but he nodded anyway. "Sounds great."