"And their terms are?"
Charles glanced over at Erik. He was rubbing his temples, as he often did. Charles had to wonder just how intense his headaches had gotten as of late. There was his usual workload, the push for the Hellions to go to the States, and his daughter was in school, getting ready to enter parliament for the first time.
On the other end of the phone Charles could hear Emma shuffle her papers.
"They want a SHIELD adjunct to the Hellions," Emma said, "We'd have to check in with them once a week and let them know before we go on a mission. If we want to do manuevers or any sort of cooperative system, then we'll talk to them as well."
A jaw in Erik's muscle twitched.
"I won't have the Hellions reporting to them," Erik said.
"They won't be," Emma said, "It looks like they'll just be keeping them updated."
Charles could hear the earnest tone in her voice. It was clear to him that she wanted Erik to take the deal. He wondered just how difficult it had been for them to reach their current impasse. He knew that she hadn't reported needing help, but that was just Emma's way. Azazel and his two prodigies were fiercely stubborn, something Charles wasn't looking forward to seeing in his nephew.
Erik snorted.
"Of course, updated," he said, "It's not much better than reporting to, but I suppose it's something. Is there anything else they want?"
Emma hesitated and there was another paper shuffle.
"They want to put a member on our team."
"They want what?" Erik snarled.
"Not as a full member," Emma said, her words hurried, "They might go on one or two missions, but not all of them. I made it clear that we wouldn't accept that."
"Then you can also make clear that we're not letting them control our teams," Erik said, "Do you understand that?"
"Erik," Charles said.
Erik glared at him Charles winced.
Erik, calm down, he thought.
No! You heard that!
Yes, I did, Charles thought, And it's not unreasonable.
Yes it is!
Not when you think about it, Charles thought, wincing at the sharpness of Erik's thoughts, They want to make sure that we're following their country's procedures.
But they're Genoshan criminals! Erik thought.
Technically they're American criminals, Charles thought, You have to remember that it was only a great deal of diplomacy that allowed them to be classified as Genoshan criminals, unable of claiming asylum in the United States.
Erik snorted again. Charles sighed and looked over at the phone. He hated to think what Emma thought of the long silence. She was a telepath too after all; she knew what they were doing.
"Who do they want to put on the Hellions?" asked Charles.
This time Emma sighed. She sounded irritated.
"You all know about the Sub-Mariner, right?" she asked.
Charles furrowed his brow.
"He's an Atlantean, correct?"
"Correct," Emma said, "he also happens to be a mutant, even among his own species. Curious how mutations are somewhat universal, isn't it?"
"How incredibly convenient," Erik said, "But if we're going to have an Avenger on our team, I'd prefer it be someone we trusted."
"Erik, you don't trust any of them," Charles said.
Erik gave him a frank look.
"Perhaps," he said.
Charles rolled his eyes.
If you want to say something, I do wish that you would say it, Charles thought.
His friend shook his head.
"You sound less than pleased at this development Emma," Erik said.
Emma laughed.
"Oh, I suppose there's nothing wrong with him as a person," she said, "It's just that he doesn't exactly play well with others."
"An Avenger who doesn't play well with others," Erik said, "It sounds like a joke."
Charles was inclined to agree.
"Anything else you can tell us about him?" asked Charles.
"Not really," Emma said, "He's hard to get along with. I ran into him in the course of my work, you know how it is."
He could almost hear her eyes rolling.
"He's arrogant and hard-headed," Emma said, "But he's not Fury's stooge either, so I suppose that's something to his credit. And…he's nice to Laura."
The tone she used for the last fact was particularly grudging. Charles furrowed his brow, repeating the words in his head.
"Why was he with Laura?" he asked.
"It was at the embassy ball," Emma said, "She'd hurt her foot and he stopped to help. I actually need to talk to you about that, but I suppose it can wait while we discuss fish-boy."
The grudging tone in her voice increased. Erik raised his eyebrows and glanced at Charles. They both knew how much she cared for her niece. Her words made him wonder just how bad Namor could be if he could help Laura and still be on Emma's hate list. He'd had to have done something rather spectacular to cause that.
"He's very strong, I know that much," Emma said, "I think he can fly as well, which would be useful. He has a habit of leaving the group at intermittent times, so we really shouldn't have to deal with him too much. I believe he was also part of the Invaders in World War II."
Charles saw Erik cock his head.
"What was your reaction when Fury told you this?" asked Erik.
"I kept my face blank and said that I'd have to discuss it with you," Emma said, "I know that you two can approve it without parliament's consent since you already got parlimentary consent to handle this, but I really wasn't sure what you'd think of it."
"You did well Emma," Erik said, "We're going to need to discuss this."
It was definitely something that they would have to carefully consider. However, there was something else Charles needed to ask before they moved on. Erik needed to hear it.
"What do you think of it Emma?" asked Charles.
There was a slight pause.
"Me?" asked Emma, sounding surprised.
Charles knew that Emma had a habit of taking herself out of the equation. He wasn't sure if it was a hangover from the days where she saw herself and the world as an instrument for the people she cared about. However, he knew that her political senses were sharp. They had wanted a fast resolution and, in a way, she had given them one.
"You're the one who's there, not us," Charles said.
There was another pause.
"I think that, if we hang on for a little longer, we can probably get a better deal," Emma said, "But I'm not sure if that means that we're going to lose months or years in all the work. It'll take months for us to deal with it if we accept this one, and holding out will bias SHIELD against us in the future. Right now no one is happy, which I believe means that it's a decent compromise."
Erik raised his eyebrows and looked over at Charles.
"Thank you Emma," Charles said, "Now, what was it you wanted to talk to us about?"
"Well," Emma said, "it's about when Laura hurt her foot."
"What about it?" asked Erik.
Emma hesitated.
"She said she didn't scrape her foot on anything," Emma said, "But those were deep gouge wounds at the front of her foot. She'd had her shoes on, and she hadn't moved from the bench. Something is going on, and I believe that it's related to her mutation."
"You mean she's manifesting?" asked Erik.
"I believe so," Emma said, "She's starting to become much more sensitive to lights, smells, and sounds. I made cookies the other day as a surprise when she was upstairs and on the other side of the embassy. She was down before I called her."
Erik and Charles exchanged a look. They both remembered Logan and what his mutations had given him the power to do. Charles had wondered if his daughter would inherit them or if her mutation would lean towards her mother. It had been proven that the mutation was carried on the 'y' chromosome, but still.
"Did her wounds heal quickly?" asked Charles.
"No, her healing factor is still normal," Emma said, "I just want to make sure that there's nothing I'm missing. The marks were in the same place on both of her feet, and they looked bad. She's still having trouble walking."
"So you want a doctor?" Erik asked.
"If that's alright," Emma said, "We have one on staff, but they're quite basic. I would like a specialist, if that's alright."
Erik nodded.
"It sounds reasonable," he said, "We'll see what we can do."
Emma let out a sigh of relief.
"Thank you," she said.
"It's quite alright," Erik said, "I believe it falls under your health care plan after all."
Emma laughed.
"I suppose so," she said.
Charles smiled.
"Is there anything else to report?" he asked.
"No, nothing," Emma said.
"Then I think we'll close up this meeting," Charles said, "Tell Fury we're still discussing it if he asks. We should have an answer soon. Parliament is in two days after all."
"Alright," Emma said, "Call me when you make your decision."
"We will," Charles said.
There was a click on the other end. Charles looked up at Erik.
"So the Howlett family tree continues," Erik said.
"It appears so," Charles said, "We really should have known; she looks almost exactly like him."
"Although she's inherited enough of her mother to not be covered in stubble and smoke cheap cigars," Erik said.
Charles laughed. He was glad, and for more reasons than one. Hearing that Laura was developing her mutation, albeit in a strange way, was good news. He had often worried that something might go wrong with the small girl, and he supposed that they weren't out of the woods yet. Ferals often manifested early, which often led to confusion and a lack of control over their mutations. Her father's powers had been incredible, but Charles couldn't imagine what he had been like as a child. he didn't think that it was pleasant.
On another note Erik had made a comment about him. Erik had developed a habit of not taking about the people they'd known who died on the Night of Fire. Charles knew it was because he couldn't think of that night without thinking of his wife. He knew that his friend hadn't let go, and he doubted that he ever would. Charles didn't hold it against him; he didn't know what he would be like if their positions were reversed.
"As for the news from SHIELD," Erik said, "I'm inclined not to accept those terms."
"Really," said Charles.
"Really," Erik said, "I see no reason why we should have to bargain with them. We used to have their unconditional support, even if it was all showmanship. I can't imagine the world changing to the point where they can't continue to give us that."
Charles waited, already preparing his counter arguments. He wasn't completely comfortable with the terms either, but Emma was right. They couldn't do this without both sides being unhappy with the result and preserve their relations. It was the best deal that they had, and they wanted to end this fast.
He hoped that he could bring Erik around.
"At the same time," Erik said, "I want to get those sons of bitches."
Charles blinked.
"And I want to get them fast," Erik said, "So, as demeaning as I find this, we'll let SHIELD have their fun. I'd like to see their adjunct, or even this Namor, stop the Hellions if they feel they need to go forward. It should be entertaining."
Erik smiled and Charles winced.
"Not exactly the spirit that I would want this done in," Charles said.
"You can't have everything Charles," Erik said.
He tapped his fingers on the table.
"And unfortunately, neither can we," he said, "I want to accept the compromise to get the MRD. But you and I both know that things change on the battlefield."
"I do," Charles said, "But we have to honor our agreements."
"And I intend to," Erik said.
He leaned back.
"I intend to."