"Dean Schiller is deciding on the menu for tonight, which surely includes you. Perhaps you could tell me your preferences, and I could pass them to him, saving him an extra trip." Gwen Spiderman said to Natasha.
Natasha really only heard the "I will tell him" part of this sentence. When she's not on a mission, the female agent isn't one who beats around bushes, so she placed one hand on Gwen Spiderman's shoulder, looking at her profile, said, "Listen, Gwen, you should keep distance from Schiller. He's extremely dangerous, especially now. Stay as far away from him as you can, alright?"
"My God, Natasha," Gwen Spiderman turned her head to incredulously look at Natasha, saying, "Don't tell me the renowned Black Widow has fallen. Do you realize you sound like a spiteful woman?"
"I am absolutely a spiteful woman right now," Natasha first covered her face with her hands, then swept back her red hair from her forehead.
Unlike those typical white girls, Gwen Spiderman is impressively smart. She raised her eyebrows saying, "Usually, when a woman tells me to keep away from a certain man with such a tone, it means they feel threatened. Did I make you feel threatened, Natasha?"
"The one who always threatens me is Schiller," Natasha shrugged, looking at Gwen Spiderman, "I must prevent him from stewing that silly fish and you, the innocent lamb, together into a dish."
"I completely don't understand what you're saying," Gwen Spiderman stood up, frowning at Natasha, saying, "If you think there's something between Schiller and me, you're overthinking. We're not close. I only act cheerful and close to him in hopes of getting more holidays. You'd know how useful this strategy is if you've been to college."
"Yes, there may not be anything between you two currently..."
"Goodness, I can't stand your nonsense anymore," Gwen Spiderman turned her head helplessly, looking at Natasha, "I always thought that special agents who could hold their ground in S.H.I.E.L.D. wouldn't be like those foolish girls in TV dramas who only think about love, but you seem even worse, and I'm not even of age yet!"
Natasha was really tired. She was now in a dilemma. She couldn't tell anyone about what Schiller had revealed to her about the dangerous personalities in the Abyss of Consciousness, and she had to keep Schiller's targets away while these personalities were keeping an eye on her.
She was aware that these conflicting actions might look like she's keeping other women away from Schiller because she's jealous, but she actually wasn't... Wait, she could be.
Natasha had a sudden realization. Other than being jealous, what other persuasive reason could she have for chasing away Schiller's fish?
She was the only one torturing herself by playing the Riddler here. Other women, or even the men, would think she's gone mad from her vague insinuations.
Natasha came to a conclusion at an alarming speed - instead of pretending to be mad and tormenting herself, why not actually go mad and torment others?
The female agent took a deep breath and slowly exhaled, subtly adjusting her facial muscles. She quickly revealed a charming but slightly chilly smile, looking at Gwen.
"I'm not accustomed to sharing my prey with other women, Miss Gwen. You should understand that."
She took a step forward, using her thin yet strong fingers, conditioned from years of holding a gun, to stroke Gwen's still somewhat babyfaced cheek. She almost touched her forehead to Gwen's forehead, looking at Gwen Spiderman from under her high brows saying,
"It's best if you stay away from both of us before I rip his throat open. No responsibility for collateral damage."
Gwen Spiderman jumped back, startled by the savage aggressiveness in Natasha's eyes. In the midst of her Spider-sense going crazy, she shook her head at the fastest speed she ever had in her life.
"Rest assured, I will absolutely stay far away from both of you. That's it! Goodbye!"
Watching Gwen Spiderman fly into the reed marsh like a bird skimming across the surface, Natasha put away her facial expression, crossed her arms, and revealed a triumphant smile.
When Gwen Spiderman's afterimage flew past Schiller and Charles, Schiller's mouth curved up, revealing a somewhat different smile than usual.
"What's so funny, Doctor Schiller?" Charles couldn't help asking.
"Nothing, just that the fish took the bait."
Charles raised an eyebrow, immediately picking up the hidden meaning in Schiller's words, feeling his necktie and saying, "Pardon my frankness, Doctor, I guessed that someone among us might be your bait, but I can't figure out who you're trying to catch."
Schiller looked in the direction of the reed marsh far away, staring at Gwen Spiderman's silhouette for a while. Then, he returned his gaze to Charles, saying, "Do you have any research on the Stockholm Syndrome?"
"Hostage syndrome?" Charles gently touched his chin with four fingers, thinking out loud, "This is a very famous case, but I don't have deep research on it."
Schiller gave a low laugh, saying, "Really? It's such a beautiful coincidence that the defiant Magneto has been circling around you for half of his life."
Charles's eyebrows lowered, making him look less gentle and wise than during the day, but he still said in his ethereal voice, "I prefer to call our relationship friendship, rather than anyone kidnapping or threatening anyone."
"Anyone slightly familiar with the two of you would think that Magneto has kidnapped you. He keeps causing problems, ruining your friendships with ordinary people, and preventing mutants from having normal lives. As such a kind man, you can't help but to clean up his mess."
"Isn't this the truth?"
Shiller forced a laugh from his lungs again, but this time it contained an element of sharp coldness. He didn't continue on that topic but instead said, "Most excellent psychologists, when studying Stockholm syndrome, realize that creating a physically enclosed space is not the best choice."
"If you lock others in a room, it may first attract the attention of officials and law enforcement. Laws and rules which took decades to establish won't be easily broken just because they're confined for a few days. To establish a relationship in such a manner is unreliable."
"So, what's your brilliant idea, Doctor?"
"Nothing more than creating a soft, unnoticeable, and non-traditional enclosed space on both the victim and others. In short, they should have a reason to pay attention to you."
"Oh, and how do you do that?" Charles' eyes slightly closed, making a serious squinting gesture that was uncommon for such a friendly professor. This seemingly sleepy expression was, in fact, a sign of his emerging aggressiveness.
"Typically, I prefer creating a situation where the victim can and only can feel a great threat from me, so that he has to pay me significant attention to guard against me."
"This approach has two benefits. First, whether they feel threatened or pay attention, these are their own decisions, giving them a maximum sense of freedom and reducing their alert response to certain guidance and forced behaviors."
"Secondly, they'd be willing to pay many costs to reduce the pressure brought by this threat. Once they compromise and take a step backward, there's no turning back."
Charles clapped lightly, but Shiller was not pleased by the praise. He merely said in his normal tone, "It's a trick that any psychologist would play, Professor. You needn't feel guilty about it."
All traces of Charles' previous aggressiveness vanished. Charles sighed, half reminiscent and half frustrated, "I was young then..."
"You can imagine, young me being a hopeless loafer, hovering among different courtesans every day, spinning between skirts, until I met Erik."
"I paid a price for the time I wasted. Erik's suffering and rich experience gave him a much more mature and determined outlook on life than mine. It was hard enough resisting his persuasion attempts, much less trying to persuade him myself."
"So, you began to arm yourself with knowledge?"
"Yes, initially I just wanted to find a way to contend with Erik. His unique worldview and aggressive attitude were simply too..."
"Too charismatic?"
"Yes, more like personal charm. The Mutant Brotherhood was capable of crazy things around the world, and there were continually new generations following Magneto unflinchingly. This alone explained Erik's charisma. I plunged into psychology and started my research, at least eighty percent of which was because of him."
Charles took a deep breath, his fingers slightly gripped the armrest of his wheelchair, and he reminisced, "Like what you said, when you go into an area of study deeply, you can't help but try. I tried once, pretending to lose control of my ability..."
"Was he scared?"
"Yes, he was scared. Perhaps it was the first time he realized just how powerful my ability was. From then on, no matter what he did, he always had to keep one eye on me."
"Not for a few months, not for a few years, but for decades." Charles shook his head, "For half his life, he had to pay attention to me because he felt threatened. How would this not establish an in-depth emotional bond?"
"Do you consider this a mistake?"
"I'd rather say that we each made the other into who we are today." Charles turned his head slightly and continued, "Without the pressure from him, I would not have thought about arming myself with knowledge and intellect, remaining the reckless playboy. Without me diverting his attention, he would have gone further and further down the extreme path, becoming the person he detests the most."
Shiller revealed a smile, "I like this explanation."
"It seems that you are also proficient in this field, Doctor." Charles looked into Shiller's eyes, "Or you have delved deeper and applied it more perfectly than me."
"Indeed I have used this, and more than once." Shiller pointed to his chin with his index finger, "The last time I went through the whole process was when I was conning a lamb, but it won't be that troublesome this time."
"Because the target is easier?"
"No, because the disease is milder."