1962

They arrived at the headquarters in the middle of the night. Ryan was the last member of the team to be collected. When they pulled in Ryan stirred from Erik's shoulder, blinking before seeing how close she had gotten next to him. Flushing a bit, she scooted to the side and nervously brushed her hair behind her ears.

"Sorry."

Erik closely watched her, his eyes set and serious.

"Think nothing of it."

Avoiding eye contact with him, she quickly slid from the back seat as Charles met her at the trunk and helped her with her bags. Erik quickly got out, and insisted on taking Ryan's bags as they began walking up the cement path towards the building. Ryan walked between both men, her boots clicking. Once they got inside, Erik mentioned he would ride the elevator and take Ryan to her room before bringing her to meet the others. Charles watched the two walk down the darkened hallway before sighing. He knew once he got a chance to talk with Ryan alone he could see exactly what her limits of her powers were and how she could help them. Still, he hadn't liked how Erik was looking her. Sighing, he began climbing the stairs down to the offices. Alone, Erik stood in the elevator with Ryan in dead silence as they rode up the floors. Erik eyed her, still dressed in her leotard and tights. Her body was slim and smooth. He eyed the swell of her breasts and thought to himself for such a young woman, she was built firm and strong. She had a strong dancer's body, and a soft gentle face with high cheekbones. Finally he twitched his finger and Ryan nearly stumbled to the side. Caught off guard, she turned towards him her eyes wild. "Was that you?" Erik smiled at her, partly amused before he twitched his hand again.

Ryan stumbled again and by some invisible force slid up very close against him, her body pressing up against his. Laughing, Erik was clearly enjoying himself as he stared down. Glaring up at him, Ryan stepped back almost as if she was fighting against a strong currant. Crossing her arms she stared at him, her eyes wild.

"Careful, might break your brand new toy."

"New toy?"

"I can tell your enjoying yourself..."

Still smiling, Erik held out the palm of his hand as Ryan's eyes widened and her boots lifted an inch or so off the ground.

"Whoa!"

Laughing Erik lowered his hand causing her to stand back down smoothly. Speechless, she smiled. "You like games?" For the first time in what seemed like forever, Erik began to laugh so hard his stomach hurt. Throwing his head back he laughed loudly before Ryan smirked.

"Try to do this..." In an instant she morphed into a solid reflecting puddle of liquid metal, dropping to the ground like water, it began quickly sliding up the sides of the walls of the elevator, slipping underneath his shoes, and crawling up the ceiling. Watching it in amazement, he held out his palms and felt himself pulling it towards him. With a gentle pull, he made the silver liquid draw back mid-air before falling into his hands. It was cold and slippery like ice. Holding it as it ran between his fingers he smiled.

"Amazing..." Just then he curled his hands and the liquid mass turned into a perfectly silver sphere. Smiling, he rolled it between his hands before he threw it in the air. In an instant before it hit the floor, Ryan turned back to her regular shape and landed softly on her feet like a cat. Smiling, she stood there, fallen strands of her hair brushing down against her face. Stepping in close, Erik looked her over.

"I do believe Ms. Sterling...this is the start of a beautiful relationship."

Ryan smirked. "Don't you mean friendship?"

Erik stared at her, a mere inch away from her lips.

"No, relationship..." And with that, he kissed her. For the first time in his whole life, he no longer felt like a monster.

1973

Logan watched Charles and Erik play chess and sip scotch for nearly an hour in complete silence. Earlier he had seen just a glimpse of the power Erik had in his younger years. It all began with Erik asking how Charles had restored the use of his legs, and both began screaming over what they had lost. As Erik stood, causing the plane to lose control, he shouted all the names of the ones they had lost. Charles laid back stunned as he saw that rage that had so often overtook his friend. He shouted down asking where he was when they were killed?

"WE WERE SUPPOSED TO PROTECT THEM!"

Hank begged him to stop as things began flying everywhere.

"YOU ABANDONED THEM!"

Before Erik stopped and gained control, he glared down at Charles like a wild animal.

"YOU SAY I TOOK RAVEN AWAY FROM YOU? WELL YOU HAD THEM TAKE AWAY MY WIFE! YOU PROMISED TO PROTECT HER LIKE ALL THE OTHERS AND YOU HAD THEM TAKE HER!"

Once he calmed down, Charles sat down up front with Hank, before Logan lit his cigar.

"So you always were an asshole."

"So I take it in the future we're best friends?"

"I spent a lot of years trying to take you down bub."

"How does that work out for you?"

"Your like me. A survivor. Now how about you pick up all this shit."

Erik looked around at all the broken plates somewhat amused as Charles sat up forward, clenching his hands against his thighs. He knew he had shown a moment of weakness by losing it on Erik. He hated him so much, and the fact he had to take him to Raven caused his blood to boil. That evening, they talked one on one, drinking scotch and playing chess. Erik said the last time he saw Raven was the day before he left Dallas. He remembered this very well...It was the day he broke her heart. After he knew, or at least thought Ryan was safe at Charles, he was hell bent on protecting the president. Raven had gone to him in the hotel he had checked himself into and appeared as her true self as she did the year before, offering herself to him.

"Please Erik, don't turn me away like last time. You know I'm not a child. Make love to me."

Erik had looked her up and down before shaking his head.

"I'm a married man, Raven...you are one of my closest friends, and most faithful partners in this fight, but I'm sorry...as beautiful as you are I've never looked at you that way, I'm sorry."

Raven's golden eyes twitched as she stared at him.

"It's because of her, 'your wife' isn't it."

"You know how I feel, that won't change." Raven slowly gathered up the coat she had dropped to reveal her blue body and glared at him.

"Some day your pretty little piece of metal will be gone and you'll be all alone. When that happens don't even think of coming looking for me." Before Erik could say anything, she slammed the door and walked out of his life. That following morning he was caught. And for ten long years, he simply sat alone thinking of all the mistakes he had made. He did know that shortly after his capture, Ryan had fled Charles and tried to rescue him. She was captured, and all he knew was that she was taken somewhere else.

In fact, one of the scientist that would so often glare down at him from the glass smiled saying they took her away, where she would be experimented on, as well as his unborn child. The rage Erik felt nearly matched the kind he felt the day his mother was murdered. More than anything he wanted to leap out of there and murder this man with his bare hands. The horrible part of it was, he had no idea if it was true or not. So the weeks turned into months, and the months turned into years and he often wondered if she was alive somewhere...with their child. He kept a mental track of time in his head, he roughly figured when the baby would have been due and wondered in that empty cell if he had a son or a daughter. If she had escaped, and if they were alive. He now knew that she had escaped, that the baby...a boy had been taken, and she was out there somewhere. Now that things had somewhat calmed down, he wanted so badly to know details. Had Charles told him earlier she was still captured he would have done anything to find her, even if it meant murdering thousands of men. Instead he knew just the basic facts, the most important was that she was out there. He knew how important it was to find Raven, but he still ached to know where his wife was. Logan watched as Charles and Erik finished their third game. Finally Erik lifted his eyes and stared at him.

"Do you...know how she escaped?"

Charles looked up.

"Ryan?"

He nodded. Sighing, Charles looked at his glass.

"As soon as she learned about your capture she lost it. I tried to calm her down but she wouldn't hear of it. She was hysterical and asked Hank and I to help her break you out. I told her it was too dangerous but she wouldn't listen. The next morning she was gone, she had taken one of the cars and left. I could sense her, but couldn't track her. I have no idea if she even got to where you were but they found her. She was wounded and they took her." "

She wasn't held anywhere near me."

"No, at a base down in Texas. I lost complete track of her, but knew they had taken her. She came back to me a year or so later. They had experimented on her, kept her like a lab rat, and took the baby."

Erik had to clench his hands against his thighs trying not to think about her being experimented on. He focused on breathing as Charles went on.

"She said it was an underground base in Texas, that they were giving her this drug so she couldn't shift shape. She was hooked on whatever the stuff they gave her, nearly unable to move or think. In a constant fog so even I couldn't even find her. She said a lot of it was a blur, but they did horrible things to her. Things she wouldn't even share with me. They took blood, flesh, brain tissue...everything they could get. When she returned, she was hurt...badly."

Erik wanted to say enough but instead he listened. "She wasn't doing well after the baby, she had no idea where he went. She knew if they kept experimenting the way they were she wouldn't last much longer. So one day lucky for her while they were trying to transfer her to surgery she was able to grab a needle. She killed two men, and barley got out before running. She was shot, and badly hurt but she escaped. Somehow a fire had started and she saw her chance and ran."

"She was shot..."

"When she arrived at the house she collapsed on the front steps. It was storming out and she was barley alive. Hank swore she wouldn't last the night. She was hooked on the drugs they were giving her and going through withdraw. She was bleeding, and her wounds were badly infected. Twice Hank nearly lost her but she in time recovered. She stayed with me for some time, still wanting to break you out but finally I convinced her it wasn't safe, mostly after what had happened. That's when she began searching for the baby...even though I think she knew what had become of him. She comes and goes as she pleases but she's never been the same. Her powers aren't as strong, and she's fought this addiction they gave her. She's broken now...whatever they did to her, she's never been able to get over it."

Erik saw one of the chess pieces slowly bend down and twist. Charles caught sight of it as well.

"After...this...I must see her. Will she come back?"

"Maybe, sometimes she's gone for months on end."

Erik chewed his lip before looking down.

"How badly was she hurt?"

Charles lifted his eyes and saw the hurt inside Erik's. "Bad...she thinks she's a monster now. She doesn't talk much."

"She's looking for him?"

"Yes, but we researched, the bases that were located there were destroyed, there's nothing left. No information of it at all even existing. I feel it was a project that was shut down shortly after Ryan escaped."

"Do you think Trask was involved?"

"I highly doubt it, there have been members of the government who have been working against us for very long now. They knew Ryan was your wife, and after your capture I think it was the best way of truly getting back to you. Besides this was the first chance they could get in having a newborn mutant that had two mutant parents to experiment on."

Erik closed his eyes before Charles sighed.

"Erik, I know you, and I know your need for revenge. But you need to stay focused. What we need to do is collect Raven and stop her from doing something stupid. After, we can find Ryan and you can see her."

"But what if Trask was involved, what if any of those men who will be there were the ones who took her..."

"Any of those men back there were you were could have as well, but it's been nearly ten years. She's been searching everywhere and hasn't found anything, not from the CIA, not from the agents, or anyone else. What Ryan needs is for you see her, speak to her...and talk sense into her. She's driven on a hopeless journey. Maybe you can have her see that there's nothing to be searching for, that she can stop living in the past and finally pick of the pieces of her life."

Erik crossed his arms looking disgusted.

"Like I could do that, you know Ryan almost better than me..."

"No, your the only one she would listen to. You always have. She would follow you to the ends of the world if she could...so yes, you can."

Erik sat there, staring off deep in thought, never looking so lost before in his entire life.

1962

Eariler, Erik walked Ryan to the room she would be sharing with Raven and Angel. The girls were downstairs with the others so the room was empty. Dropping her bags on the bed, Ryan looked around with her hands on her hips before Erik stood before her watching her closely.

"Do you need anything?"

Ryan shook her head.

"No, I'm fine thank you. I would like to go meet the others."

"But of course..." Cocking his head to the side, he saw her nervous expression.

"Are you all right?"

Ryan shrugged. "I guess so, it's so strange, my whole life i've hidden what I am in just in the matter of a day I'm told there's others like me, and the tiny little world I've built for myself I left behind. Here I am at a CIA base with strangers, completely scared out of my mind."

Gently touching her chin, he made her look up at him. Giving her a smile, he motioned around them.

"They won't be strangers for long. You'll be safe here." Ryan smiled before he sighed.

"I'll be going away for a few days with Charles, there's something we need to do..." Ryan stepped back.

"It has to do with what's happening, isn't it?" Erik dropped his eyes and nodded. "There's a very dangerous man out there, the one who's causing all of this that Charles told you about."

"Shaw?" He nodded.

"We're trying to locate him before it's too late."

"There's something else isn't it."

"What?"

"Why your after him...I can see it in your eyes."

Sighing, Erik stared at her.

"That my girl, is a story for another time. Until then, you stay here with the others. Like I said you'll be safe."

"The only two people I know so far are taking off on a secret dangerous mission, perfect."

Erik smirked.

"I would't say dangerous...but we'll be back. You stay here?"

"I have nowhere else to go, I'll be here."

Smiling Erik looked down at her body and gulped slightly.

"I look forward to getting to know you Ms. Sterling."

Ryan stared up at him partly amused. "Is that so?"

"Yes, in fact I can't wait to learn everything about you." "Same goes here." Stepping back, Erik smiled before taking her hand and gently kissing it.

Afterwards, he led her downstairs where she met everyone in the lounge. Erik at first could sense she was nervous, standing close to him before Raven ran over taking her hand and offering to make her a drink. Within seconds all of them surrounded her talking and laughing. Ryan looked somewhat overwhelmed, but relieved that she was in the company of good people. Erik stood back watching and couldn't help but glare when he noticed Alex taking a good look of her from behind. Clenching his fists together, he stood back and knew if he watched a second longer there would be a lot of damage to the room. Turning, he followed Charles out. The following night when everyone sat in lounge, Ryan sat in a skirt and blouse between Angel and Raven, her newest roommates. The girls had been very curious about her, asking about her dancing and her life back home. When they began talking about powers Ryan simply stood up and first transformed her arm into a sharp blade. The others watched amazed before she melted down to the liquid metal, and then reformed smiling. Everyone clapped before Angel smiled.

"Erik must love you, you're made out of metal!"

Raven sat there before giving a funny look as Ryan blushed and sat back down. A few hours later everyone was dancing around like crazy. Ryan was twirling around laughing for once feeling at ease. She was in a place where she no longer had to feel scared, or hidden. Just then Charles, Erik, and Moria came in demanding to know what happened.

"You should be professor X, and you should be Magneto."

"Expansional."

Erik said before locking eyes with Ryan. She looked very pretty, her hair up, dressed in that shirt, blouse, and go-go boots. She was dancing near the sofa Raven had jumped off, and stood there looking both guilty and amused. Before he turned, he smirked at her before heading over to his quarters. Quickly packing a small bag, and grabbing his leather jacket, Erik was lost in his own thoughts about hoping to find Shaw. That's when a light knock came to his door. Looking over his shoulder, he glanced at the door before eyeing the clock. There was still nearly a half an hour before they had to head to the plane. Walking over, he answered it and saw Ryan standing there.

"Well, isn't this a surprise." Blushing slightly, Ryan raised her eyebrows.

"I sure know how to make a good impression. Guess that's what happens when too much wine happens."

Smiling Erik let her in. Closing the door behind him he watched her as she walked over to his bed. Enjoying the view, he crossed his arms.

"I wouldn't take it too heart, you guys are kids." Turning, Ryan gave Erik a look. "I'm twenty-three...speak for yourself Erik, I'm not a kid." Erik laughed.

"Twenty-three sounds pretty young to me."

"How old are you?"

"Thirty-four."

"Wow..." Laughing again, Erik walked over.

"So, think you can stay out of trouble until I return?"

Ryan smiled.

"I'll try my hardest."

Staring down, Erik opened his palms and smiled as she came closer to him.

"I must say, you are quite a find..."

"Same goes to you." Reaching down, Erik laced one of his hands into hers and gently squeezed.

"If only the CIA knew...here I was falling for one of their new recruits."

"Falling huh? Erik you barley know me..."

Smiling, Erik stared down at her.

"That's because...I sense a certain...attraction between the two of us."

Opening his palms, he pulled her in closer before wrapping his arms around her and deeply kissing her. Unknown to both, Raven watched from the window outside in the courtroom. Shaking her head she turned and continued walking.

"Typical..." She muttered to herself.

1973

Los Angeles Ryan sat at a dim lit bar, her leather jacket on, and her once fine hair now tied sightly back with a silk scarf. She was slowly touching the rim of her beer glass before her attention came to the TV that hung over the bar. It was a news report...about Paris. Instantly her tired eyes widened. There on the television she watched in Paris her friends she had once thought of as family. There was Raven, Hank and... She gasped, feeling the entire body go numb as her heart dropped. Played footage of what had happened was shown. Hovering and lowering himself down on the ground was Erik Nearly knocking her bar stool over, she gasped.

"Jesus..."

There he was attacking Raven and Hank, causing gates and cars to fly, and lifting himself up from the crowds.

"No...it can't be..."

Scared out of her mind she ignored all the puzzled men at the bar watching her before her hand went to her breast and she felt her heart race. There he was, not Erik her husband, or Erik the father of her son and man she had fallen deeply in love with. No, what she saw on this news report was Magneto. The man who had became lost to her. Slowly she backed up, not taking her eyes off the news before she hit the doorway. Spinning around, she ran out.