A/N: A little flashback in the beginning here ^^

"So…" he began, "have you given any thought on, you know, the future?"

I hummed in thought. "Not too sure to be honest. I mean, protecting the nation is dandy and all, but… I'd like something more. You know what I mean?"

Xerex nodded. "I understand you perfectly. One cannot indulge in such rigorous tasks and deny pleasure"

"Yeah. Sometimes I wish the NSA would give me bigger missions. It would be wonderful to get my name out there, prove I'm one of the top dogs in the market. Not leaving the saving of the world solely to the men, no offense"

He chuckled. "None taken. Your passion for your line of work is one of your many attractive qualities. You do work yourself pretty hard sometimes you know. Municiberg has, what, like twenty Supers in the area? Surely you could spend some more of your time leisurely."

I eyed him with half-lidded eyes. "The City can never be too safe. There's always someone lurking."

Xerex shrugged. "Still, it's nice to have a little peace and quiet every now and then. Such a girl as yourself deserves it…. " He began to shift through his coat pocket, "...And more." I knew right there and then that he was going to give me another gift. I sighed.

"Look Xerex, you've gotten me plenty of jewelry, I mean, don't you think I have enou - "

I gasped mid-sentence, staring down at the little black box he had pulled out of his jacket pocket. He stared deep into my eyes, intently.

"I've been wanting to ask you something for a little while now, Helen," he began. "You are the most gorgeous woman I've ever met. Smart. Beautiful." He took my hand and ran his thumb softly over my knuckles. My breath hitched. "It would be a great honor if I could take you as my wife."

"Xerex, I mean, I-I don't know what to say…" I breathed, eyes still examining the finely shaved diamond.

He took my hand and delicately slipped the ring on my finger.

"Say yes."

"You seem surprised." Xerex said after a while, observing me inside the dome with a smirk. "You must have known I would be prepared for such a rash action. And in case you were hoping for a timely rescue at the hands of your backup…" He snapped a finger, and a mechanical type of noise could be heard coming from the open door at the end of the hallway. Marching inside the room were robot-guards - identical to the ones that had been on the dock - and their prisoner was none other than Mirage. She looked defeated, her long platinum hair concealing most of her face as she glanced up at me.

"Sorry," she mumbled.

Xerex turned back to me, tapping his cane against the green orb that surrounded me. "You wanted to know what I was planning, dear Helen?" he asked, and then extended his hand to gesture at himself and I. "This. I lured you here for a conversation. Nothing more."

What?! Was this a joke? If it was, I sure as heck wasn't falling for it. "But the Eiffel Tower! Bomb Voyage…"

"You think me a barbarian? Please. The tower was merely teleported to my underground lair. It was a ruse… one you fell for in totality." A ruse? What was he talking about? Xerex answered my question before I could even voice it and continued. "It was a test. A test of your commitment. A test of your integrity." He narrowed his eyes at me. "A test you have failed."

Xerex looked down to the floor, almost sounding like he had a pitiful tone in his voice as he went on, pacing in front of the dome. "And so here you are… halfway across the world from your husband. Chasing ghosts from your past. And where does he think you are? Shopping? Visiting a sick grandmother?" He folded his arms and looked up at me with a soft glare.

"If you're so good, and I'm so evil, why are you the one who lies to the people you proclaim to love? I suppose we aren't as different as you think, my dear..."

The way he said it made me want to gag a little bit, but I couldn't let it show. He was expecting a reaction, and I wasn't about to give it to him. So I only sat there, tight-lipped, as his voice penetrated the silent air in the room again.

"Earlier you inquired as to the nature of my intentions. I want one thing: Admit you made a mistake when you married your Mr. Incredible. Acknowledge that you have wasted your life." He approached the glass, wistfully holding an object in his hand. Upon closer examination, I could see that it was the diamond wedding ring that he'd used to propose to me. Huh. The bastard kept it after all these years. He looked up at me again. "Admit you should have married me."

The quiet in the air was evident and thick as everyone in the room eyed me. Xerex. Mirage. The robots. Breaths were held as they waited for me to respond to this… proposal of sorts.

It was noiseless for a good minute. And then, something I didn't expect happened. I laughed. It started out as a little chuckle at first, but before long my sides were starting to hurt. Confusion was splashed across his face, though it quickly turned into anger.

"You dare laugh?"

"I'm sorry but… it's just… hehehe…. It's just so silly! Right?"

I heard some more snickering and found that Mirage was holding a hand to her mouth, attempting to subside some of the laughs. I pointed to her."See! It's not just me!" I attempted to calm myself down, wiping some of the tears from the corner of my eyes so I could speak properly.

"You could literally do anything! You have so much money, you have so much power. And… and I'm your obsession? I mean seriously, trying to prove that I'm unhappy? That I wasted my life?" Honestly, this whole plan, this whole big plot to have me back was just flat out ridiculous!

He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose and looking visibly upset. The sight made me laugh even more. "You go too far, Helen… much too far."

I shrugged, frankly not giving a hoot anymore. "Okay, fine. At least I'll die laughing, am I right? You sure know how to pull a good prank, Xerex baby!"

My comments threw Mirage into a bigger fit of laughter. "Stop! Heh-heh-heh, it's too much! I can't… I can't breathe! Hahaha!"

Xerex scowled, and raised his fist high into the air. "Soldiers!" he commanded to the robots. "Execute them!"

But to his surprise - and mine as well for that matter - the bots turned on him instead! They surrounded Xerex, weapons charging up to the maximum power.

"Wh- what? How dare… what are you - !" he sputtered, unable to comprehend what was unfolding before him.

Mirage tapped him on the shoulder, and Xerex whirled around to face her. "Don't look so surprised," she said with a wide grin. "You see, that's what happens when you hire mercenaries. They're always ready to sell themselves to the highest bidder in the market."

She nodded at me, and I nodded back with a smile of my own. Somehow, someway, she'd used her sneaking abilities to weave her way out of the conflict back on the dock. Probably bribed the bots or something, but what mattered was that it was for the greater good. For our mission. And to help me - her partner - someone who used to be her enemy. Well, that certainly seemed to change. And thank goodness for it! I looked back at Xerex, who had a very apparent look of flabbergastation on him.

"Xerex…" I started. "My life may not have turned out how I expected… but after these last couple of days, especially after seeing you again…" I paused and let out a sigh of relief. "I'm glad."

And - despite telling a few lies these past couple days - that was the truth.