Authors Note: Hello everyone! ;) It's nice to be back and I really hope that you are all still with me here, I've started my new job and I hardly have anytime to myself but fear not, because this story is nowhere near being forgotten, I like it to much!

So please don't lose faith I promise I'll continue ;-)

P.S DISCLAIMER IN CHAPTER ONE!

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

Charles went to the door with Scott by his side, the others stood in the main hall just out of sight just in case the visitor was here for sinister reasons, although that was unlikely as they probably wouldn't have rang the doorbell.

Charles swung the door wide and then paled alarmingly.

"Hello Charles." The older man at the doorway greeted looking pale himself.

"Erik?" Charles said quietly, obviously in deep shock.

"Hello old friend." Erik said feeling overwhelmed at the moment himself.

"Erik, oh my, please come in." Charles said trying to regain his composure, the others immediately came out of hiding and walked over to the visitor.

The men grabbed the other's hand and held on tightly both looking on the brink of tears, the team decided that the two needed to be left alone in private and immediately went to their rooms.

"Who was that?" Scott said looking completely bewildered.

"I have no idea, but the emotion radiating from the two was very intense." Jean said looking emotional herself.

"They looked really glad to see each other didn't they?" Bobby piped up, everyone had decided to go and sit in Scott's room.

"Yeah they were, Jeannie was right, de emotion it was somethin' else." Remy said shaking his head and looking out of it himself, his empathy had picked up the men's feelings and he felt them just as strongly as they did.

"I am glad that Charles is happy." Ororo said after a while and the others nodded.

Charles had regrouped somewhat and led his old friend into his study with him.

"Erik, it has been so long. Where did you go? What happened to you?" Charles felt like a child again, desperate to find out what had happened to his old friend.

"Charles, some awful things exist in this world, things that I am sure that even with your knowledge that you are oblivious to." Erik said a little sadly.

"I am not the naïve boy that I was anymore Erik." Charles said honestly.

"No I am sure that you are not. You wouldn't have a team of superheroes in your mansion if you were." Erik said with a wry grin.

"How did you know?" Charles asked.

"I saw the news, and even though you weren't anywhere to be seen, I knew that you were the only one similar enough to me to have your own team of superheroes." Erik said with a smile.

"Yes, well, it was at one point our dream." Charles said softly.

"And I am proud and honoured that you continued with it." Erik said honestly.

"Erik, what happened forty years ago?" Charles asked, needing to know what had made his friend disappear without a trace.

"I had been showing off my powers, trying to impress a girl." Erik said.

"I remember. Elizabeth Grant." Charles said.

"Yes, well. Elizabeth wasn't impressed with a mutant…"

Erik Lensherr was 22 years old, he was born in England but he had Jewish parents, he was wealthy and a powerful mutant, he had the whole world at his feet.

He had spotted Elizabeth Grant, a beautiful woman who resembled Elizabeth Taylor, with pale skin, black hair and exotic violet eyes; he had immediately tried to win her over.

He had manipulated some metal into a heart and floated it over to her; she had looked at him in disgust and waltzed off.

Erik hadn't figured her for a bigot, but it seemed as if she was so, he decided to cut his losses and move on. Three days later as he was making his way to see his friend Charles he had been approached by a group of heavily muscled men with guns and knocked unconscious.

"I awoke in a cell, it was a mutant experimentation lab, where they did experiments on me every day – it was a government lab and there were soldiers everywhere and they beat me, ripped me open and caused so much pain, that had my hair not been silver before it certainly would have been now." Erik said looking terrified, scared of his own memories and that tore Charles apart.

"Charles, I was at that facility for ten long years, then there was an accident – an explosion of some sort and we got free, but I was scared I met a woman as she was escaping, her name was Raven and we stayed at a safe house, scared to leave for another five years, then we decided that things like that should never happen, and we decided to fight back." Erik stated.

"Erik, I am so sorry that you had to go through something like that." Charles said sadly.

"Do not be sorry for me Charles, be sorry for the others that are still stuck in facilities like that, and feel sorry for the pathetic homo-sapiens that run them, for they will die in horrific ways." Erik said coldly.

"Erik, think about what you are saying, you're not a murderer." Charles said.

"Oh but Charles, I am. They changed me, and that is the only thing that I shall thank them for, for they unlocked my true potential." Erik stated.

"But Erik, how will you go about your revenge?" Charles said bewildered.

"You are not the only one with a team Charles." Erik said dryly.

"You also have a team?" Charles stated surprised.

"Yes I do and I came here today not only to see you, but to ask you to join with my team." Erik said.

"Erik I am sorry, I truly am, I would gladly help to free the mutants that are being held and I would gladly see every one of those soldiers arrested but my team do not kill, not if there is another way." Charles stated.

"Then stay out of our way Charles, for if you are not with us, you are against us." Erik said coldly.

"I will never be against you Erik, but I can not sit by and watch you murder countless people." Charles said honestly.

"I am sorry that you feel that way." Erik said and then got up and walked away.

Charles watched his old friend go and then sat in silence; eventually he sighed, rested his head in his hands and sobbed.

Ok there's another chapter done and dusted and I'm halfway through the next one ;-) Please review and let me know what you're liking and what you'd like to see. Much love till next time xx