Authors Note: First and foremost, I wrote this because I'm a fan. In my opinion, there is simply not enough Eric/Charles in the world of fanfiction. Just so you know, this will eventually be a romance not a bromance. I do not own any of these characters, and any quotes I use from the various movies are only a shout out to some of the best lines between these two. If you're a fan, you can spot them. I haven't found a beta yet, so it's self edited. Please keep criticism constructive. I intend this to be about fifteen chapters, nine of which are already done. I will be posing two chapters every other day and then one chapter a week till I'm done. This is the last of the long author's notes...promise.

"Magneto…," Mystique asked, "are you sure this is a good idea?"

"Yes…we wouldn't be here if I didn't," I told her with a glare.

We stood outside of the CIA grounds on a mission to rescue Shaw's white witch. The last thing we needed was the talented telepath to be made a tool of the CIA. One way or another, we would be putting an end to that possibility. Whether she decided to work for me or was simply eliminated was up to her…for now. I turned to Mystique and the others.

"Follow me," I ordered.

I walked purposely toward the side of the building not worried about being seen. The humans could be easily taken care of.

The steel I-beams hidden within the walls of the building called to me. With a clench of my fist, they exploded free of the concrete that surrounded them and created a huge hole. With small bits of debris and dust raining down on us, we made our way into the building and to the lower levels where Miss Frost was being held. I made short work of the guards we encountered by turning their own weapons against them.

I ripped the door off of her cell just in time to see her turn into her diamond form.

"I know we've had our differences," I began.

She looked around suspiciously. "Where's your telepath friend?"

I kept my face a mask.

"Gone…left a little gap in my life if I'm honest. I was rather hoping you would fill it. Join us."

She looked over at the other mutants. I wondered what she thought of her former colleagues' presence. I'm sure she had already stolen the memories of everything that had happened from their minds. Telepaths were good at taking secrets.

Turning her attention back to me, she flashed a smile. If it was meant to charm me, it failed miserably.

"Eric, I believe."

"I prefer Magneto," I stated.

I began to hear voices and footsteps coming down the hall.

"Azazel, I think we've worn out our welcome." I turned to the others. "Let's take our leave."

I grabbed onto Azazel's shoulder and the others followed suit. In an instant, we were pulled away from CIA headquarters to a safe house hidden away in the jungles of Costa Rica.

I looked around the lavish estate, one of many that Shaw owned before I took them from him, and then back at the others.

"Come with me, Miss Frost. I think it's time we became reacquainted."

I showed Miss Frost to my study and sat down behind the desk there. She sat across from me, propped her legs up, and looked around.

She gave me a saucy smile. "Haven't had time to redecorate, I see. This place was always Sebastian's favorite. He'd be glad to know you haven't changed anything."

I simply studied her and wondered if I should have just ended her in the cell. She interrupted my internal debate with a question.

"So sugar….am I to assume the goal is the same?"

I kept my face a blank mask. "And what goal is that Miss Frost?"

She smiled condescendingly. "The same goal every powerful megalomaniac has…world domination of course."

I was beginning think that she didn't understand the gravity of her situation. What she was hoping to accomplish with her casual mention of Shaw, I didn't know. But the anger began to build. My face revealed nothing, but a letter opener that was resting on the desk levitated into the air and started spinning lazily between us.

She gazed at it with a bored expression and then covered her mouth and yawned.

"Miss Frost…I don't believe you're taking me very seriously. And that is a mistake"… with a twist of my wrist I bent the arm of the chair up and circled it around her neck, "a deadly one".

"You need to understand," I continued, "the only reason you're still alive is because I see you as useful." I clenched my fist together and tightened the metal around her neck. "You're not irreplaceable, Miss Frost." I smiled a little when I saw her face begin to turn red. "Remember that."

I didn't remove the metal from her neck (I kind of liked the collared look on her) but I allowed some of the pressure to ease. I waited for her to catch her breath.

With every moment that ticked by, my anger began to fade. It was replaced by a feeling I was coming accustomed to as of late; emptiness.

The only sound in the room was Emma's ragged breathing. It was time for her to understand where she stood.

With a flick of my finger I separated the metal from the chair leaving a collar of metal around her neck. I dragged her to her feet using the new accessory.

"I'm making you a job offer, Miss Frost but it seems you may need some time to think about your choices. And just so we understand each other, they are quite limited."

"Take the night. We'll talk again in the morning."

Emma looked at me with a mixture of anger and trepidation.

"And stay out of here," I said pointing to my head. "I'll know if you go digging around." I added

Then I smiled, "Nice necklace." I made sure she felt a little tug. "It suits you."

She glared at me, but said nothing. Maybe she was finally learning to keep her mouth shut.

I walked out of the room without a backwards glance and started towards the stairs. When I arrived at my room, Mystique was leaning against the doorframe waiting for my arrival.

"How did things go with Emma," she asked.

"Fine," I answered. "I've given her the night to weigh her options. Emma and I will speak again in the morning. Afterwards, I would like to meet with all of you. Make sure everyone is aware they need to be there."

"All right…" she hesitated. "There are some things I would like to speak to you about. " Her eyes drifted to the door with a hopeful expression on her face. "I was hoping we could speak now."

"Unless it's a pressing matter, I'd rather it wait till morning," I told her firmly.

Without waiting for her to say anything else, I opened the door and then shut it behind me .With a wave of a finger I slid the lock in place and as it clicked behind me, a small measure of tension eased from my shoulders at the sound.

I slowly walked into the bathroom and over to the sink. Turning on the cold water, I let it run over my hands. I swept some up to the back of my neck, which was slick with sweat. It was very hot and humid. I doubted I would ever become accustomed to the weather here.

I glanced in the mirror and was greeted by the eyes of a stranger. For so many years my eyes burned with the fire of my anger….my rage. Now there was nothing. It was like looking into the eyes of a dead man, and I was very familiar with what those looked like.

The helmet seemed heavier than usual, but I wouldn't take it off. Miss Frost could not be trusted, and though I had given her a warning, I wasn't taking any chances. I've seen what a telepath could do.

I went through my nightly routine, lay down on top of the sheets, shoved a pillow under my head and scowled slightly at the inconvenience of having to wear the helmet to bed. Up until today, I didn't have a reason to keep it on while I was here, but now things were different. It would be a long time before I would be spending any time without it.

I allowed the sounds that filtered through the open windows to distract me from any deeper thoughts. The chirp of crickets and tree frogs lulled me to sleep each night and were one of the few things about Costa Rica that I didn't dislike.

It wouldn't take long for me to drift off, but I also knew I wouldn't be staying asleep for long.