At a particularly late hour, Clara Robinson walked into the crowded pub and pushed back her brown hair. College students milled around the room, chatting to friends and drinking. Clara bit the inside of her cheek - why had she agreed to going here instead of in her armchair reading?

"I'm going to see if anyone we know is here; I'll be right back!" her friend, Susan Carpenter, said with a grin. Before Clara could protest, the girl walked off towards the biggest gathering of people.

"Susie, you're going to pay for this..." Clara murmured to herself. She decided she should at least get a drink for herself and walked up to the bartender. Once she had a glass, she leaned on the tall wooden counter and watched the people around her. Clara was never one for big parties or nights in the pub. She liked reading by the fireplace or writing at midnight. Susan called her boring, but Clara had learned not to care what her best friend thought about her seemingly dull habits.

She sipped the drink lightly and was watching her friend greeting some other students when she met eyes with a man across the room. He had brown hair that fell around his face, a rambunctious smile, and bright eyes that glittered. He grinned at her, and she felt her face flush. Clara looked away quickly and started tracing the patterns of the wood.

She was about to finish her drink when she felt someone tap her shoulder. She turned and saw the grinning man. She smiled back a bit shyly.

"Hello," he said with a crisp British accent. Clara noded.

"Hello," she replied with the same accent. He gazed into her eyes.

"Did you know that you're a mutant?" he asked. The man leaned on the counter like her and folded his arms. He was wearing a black vest over a white dress shirt and had matching slacks. Clara raised an eyebrow.

"Is that so?" she said, a hint of a smile on her lips.

"Why yes!" he smirked. "You are a very lovely girl with a mutated MCR-one gene."

"Thank you," Clara said and bit back a little laugh. She started rubbing the silky material of her blue dress."And what exactly is a mutated MCR-one gene?"

"Auburn hair," he nodded towards her dark hair. "It's a mutation, and it's a very groovy mutation if I might say." Clara leaned her elbow more onto the counter, and the man continued. "Did you know that mutations took us from single-celled organisms to being the dominant form of reproductive life of this planet? Infinite forms of variation with each generation, and all through mutation." He looked back up at her and grinned more. Clara finally gave a laugh.

"Is this what you use on all the girls here?" she asked. He placed a hand on his chest in mock embarrassment.

"Only the pretty ones," he winked. Clara rolled her eyes.

"Do you ever say your name?" she said. He nodded.

"In the morning," he teased. Clara blushed.

"R-really?" she stammered. He laughed and shook his head.

"I'm Xavier," he said, bowing a little and making her laugh more. "Charles Xavier." They shook hands. "And your's?"

"Clara Robinson, pleasure to meet you," she smiled. "I presume you're at..."

"Oxford," Charles finished. "Getting my Phd."

"Are you in the sciences?" she said. He nodded with another smile.

"Yes. You?"

"Arts," she smiled back. "At Cambridge." He raised an eyebrow.

"And what are you doing here at a pub full of science students from Oxford, Ms. Robinson?" he asked. She sighed and leaned back.

"Not sure, actually," Clara responded. "My best friend dragged me here because she claimed I'm too boring."

"I'm sure that's not so," Charles said, putting a hand on his temple. "I mean, you just finished a whole brandy by yourself." They both glanced at the empty cup. She blushed.

"It was small?" she suggested. Charles laughed. "And how did you know what I ordered?"

"Lucky guess," he shrugged. He tilted his head a bit. "So what kind of arts do you study, Ms. Robinson?"

"Humanities," she said. "French and English literature mostly." She looked back at him. "What do you do?"

"Genetics, but especially mutations," he replied. "I'm going to get my thesis published and become a professor soon."

"I'll have to take one of your classes someday, Professor Xavier," she laughed. He laughed also but shook his head.

"I will await the day of your coming," he smiled. She laughed.

"And what is so interesting about genetics, Professor Xavier?" she grinned. He grinned back.

"Well," he started. "Mutations could hold the key to the secret of life itself."

"How is that so?"

"They've changed the world and changed our lives without detection," he said, clearly into his work. "Maybe they could be the reason we exist."

"Sounds a bit like a religion," she laughed. He shrugged.

"I like to call myself an intelligent atheist," he said with a smirk. She raised an eyebrow. "Oh...you're not religious are you?"

"C. of E," she said. "Church of England." He nodded.

"Well, I suppose someone has to be," Charles said with a playful smile. She was not sure if he was joking or not.

The two continued to have small talk about the different schools and about their majors. Charles was a very interesting person and seemed to have a contagious smile. He also seemed to be fond of the other brunette, who was flattered but tried not to show it.

"So...are you here with anyone?" Clara asked after a couple minutes. They had moved to sit at a table in the middle of the room with glasses of amber beverages. They were both content with talking each other while the students danced and laughed around them.. He nodded, and her heart dropped a little. 

"My sister, Raven," he said. She breathed a small sigh of relief and smiled.

"That must be nice, to have a sister," she commented. He nodded and was about to say something when a tall blonde girl walked over. She was wearing a large coat and had an air of eliteness. Clara pushed back her hair again and wished she was taller.

"Oh hello, Raven," Charles turned to glance up and greet the girl. She nodded at him and looked Clara up and down.

"Hey Charles," she said. She had an American accent, and Clara wondered if she was visiting. "Who's your friend?" Raven put a hand on the back of his chair.

"This is Clara Robinson," he said. Clara gave a small smile and wondered why they didn't look alike.

"Hi," she said. Raven nodded back.

"Hi."

"A-are you a mutant too?" Clara asked, trying to be friendly. Raven's eyes widened, and she turned to Charles. He just patted her wrist.

"I was just telling Ms. Robinson about my work," he said. Raven breathed with understanding. She looked less alarmed. "I told her how brown hair is a mutation, which is, again, very groovy." He smiled at her.

"Yes," Clara said, biting her lip. She looked back up and saw tints of brown in Raven's hair. "Oh your hair is lovely too," she pointed. Charles glanced at her hair and suddenly seemed annoyed.

"Yes, quite," he glared at Raven, who just shrugged. Suddenly, Susan rushed over and grabbed Clara's arm.

"Clara, dear, we need to go," she said hurriedly. "Joshua just told me that we have an exam tomorrow!"

"Yes, Susie, I told you this," Clara sighed. Susan groaned.

"Well let's go! Come on! I swear I'm going to fail this class!" The friend whisked Clara out of her chair.

"I hope you find your secret to life!" Clara said before Susan ran out of the room. He watched the blue hem of her dress as she was dragged away. Raven sat down in Clara's seat.

"Do you like her?" she asked with a laugh. "She seemed nice. A bit too proper for my liking, but nice."

"Yes, she was," Charles said. He could tell that Clara Robinson was not just a shy girl studying English. It also helped that he read a part of her mind. He wondered if any girl would ever think he was that charming.

"Was she into science too?" Raven said. Charles shook his head.

"Unfortunately no." There was a sudden flash of blue, and Charles looked up to see Clara pressing something into his hand with a grin. She quickly ran off after her friend, and he looked down. In his palm was a small napkin with a few numbers. He smiled widely, and Raven rolled her eyes.

"You're an idiot."

"Yes, but now I'm an idiot with a girl's number."

~

can james mcavoy stop being so cute?????????

and once again, part one of this book is basically a merge between xmen first class and the theory of everything so YAY!