Two days had passed since Le Chiffre had gotten his darling James back and to be honest he had never been so happy in all his life. He had changed his hair back to is natural jet black color and it seemed to reassure James having Le Chiffre look like, well, Le Chiffre. James had slept most of the day before and though the Albanian felt the urgent need to make love to his sweet blonde agent, he was content to just lay there under the silk sheets and hold the younger man. He didn't know the extend of what MI6 had done to the man he loved but he was determined to do whatever was needed to make James happy and feel safe. The fact that he was still alive suggested that Bond still didn't remember and Le Chiffre wasn't sure if that was a relief any longer, at first he liked the amnesia because it meant that he could have James, but now that he truly loved the blonde he just felt like he was taking advantage. James Bond only loved him because he didn't remember the monster that Le Chiffre really was.

Le Chiffre was stuck between a rock and a homicidal MI6 agent, on the one hand if Le Chiffre told James then he wouldn't feel like he was taking advantage, however on the other hand he would lose the man he loved and he couldn't bear that. MI6 taking James had broken Le Chiffre, but losing James would kill him. Shatter him into a million pieces and set a bomb off in his heart. There in their bed looking down at the sleeping blonde Le Chiffre decided he was a coward and that he was going to be selfish and keep all he knew to himself.

Golden sun drifted in through the ever so tiny gap in the chocolate drapes, bouncing of Bond's dazzling blonde hair making it look like he glowed. Le Chiffre hummed in approval. Though it was one in the afternoon James continued to sleep soundly, it was beyond clear that he hadn't gotten very much real sleep since he was last in his lovers arms. The older man took comfort in knowing James felt safe with him. James' skin was so very pale and Le Chiffre longed to suck a beautiful purple bruise onto his delicate neck but that could wait; just watching the man sleep was heavenly enough.

Suddenly James turned in Le Chiffre's arms to face him, slowly the blonde opened his eyes and looked up at the older man.

"Afternoon, James."

"Hey." Bond greeted as he rubbed the sleep from his aqua blue eyes.

Even though he was a coward and determined to keep James to himself, Le Chiffre felt like he needed to apologise for what had happened when they first met, Bond wouldn't remember but he had to get the guilt out of his heart; that way he would have even more room to love James.

"James, I know this won't make sense to you but I am so sorry about Montenegro. Really I am. I was scared and I didn't care if I hurt you."

Everything went silent as an uncomfortable quietude settled in the room, thick and almost choking. James' eyes looked distant and dark, more like they did before the accident. Just as Le Chiffre began to worry and panic James spoke in a whisper so quiet Le Chiffre had to strain to hear it.

"What happened to Vesper?"

It was such a simple question but Le Chiffre felt like he had been hit by a train. The only way James would know about Vesper Lynd was if...

"You remember." It wasn't a question, just a soul crushing observation.

"Yes, I do. Now answer the question."

James sat up in the bed so he could look down at the broken Albanian, he didn't sound angry just sort of curious.

"I needed the code, after the crash there was no way you could tell me even if you wanted to. Vesper was all I had, I needed that money and I needed it quickly. Kratt...he tortured her for a few hours while I and the doctors were with you, it was then that I figured it out. That you would use something that you could dangle under my nose, her name. A few hours after I got at the money and transferred it she escaped the boat I was keeping her on, jumped overboard. She em...she got caught in the wake of another yacht, hit her head...she died."

Every word was the truth, he couldn't lie to James, not now he knew. Bond took in the information, he had known Le Chiffre long enough to know what he looked like when he lied, and there was not a single drop of dishonesty in his eyes. In perfect silence Le Chiffre leaned over to his bedside table and from the top draw pulled a Ruger SR9 then turned back and set it down in James' lap.

"A gun?"

"James, I don't know why you haven't killed me yet. I thought you would have done it the instant you remembered but it seems not. At first it was fun to have a blank MI6 canvas, but then I fell in love with you and I realised something. I don't want to live without you, James. So go ahead...I won't fight you. I'd rather it be by your hands than someone else's." Le Chifre's accent was thick.

With that Le Chiffre leaned back on the soft white silk pillow and closed his eyes to wait for the end. It was true, Le Chiffre didn't want to live without his darling, perfect, bright-eyed, porcelain skinned, angelic James.

"I'm not going to kill you."

Le Chiffre's eyes flew open in shock. Not kill him? His brow furrowed in intense confusion as he watched James throw the Ruger to the bottom of the bed where neither of them could reach it.

"I remembered who I was a few days after they took me." He began slowly, refusing to look at his lover. "It hurt, knowing who you were and what you'd done, what I'd done. I wanted to kill you, you'd taken everything I was and lied to me. I told them I remembered I was 007 but they didn't believe me, said they needed to be sure so as I wouldn't get anything wrong when I told them about you. They showed me pictures and audio, even put me through electroshock when my doctor wasn't looking." That doesn't make sense, electroshock damages memories, thought Le Chiffre but he didn't say a word. "I wanted to kill you so badly. Then you came for me and you did something I wasn't expecting, you didn't ask if I remembered, not once. Instead, you just held me and told me you loved me." Finally James looked over to Le Chiffre. "That's why I didn't try to kill, you showed that I wasn't a play thing MI6 agent, you loved me."

"I do, completely."

"It leaves me with a choice, Le Chiffre. I can choose MI6 or you. MI6 was my home, where there the people I called friend were. I used to be all Queen and country but that James Bond died that car crash in Montenegro, he's gone. Even with my memories there's no bringing that James Bond back, I've had a whole life since then and so I've become this James Bond. And this man knows something that the old one didn't, he knows what MI6 is willing to put there own agents through just to get a scrap of intelligence that they probably already know. And he knows that even though you have done awfuland horrendousthings, you were willing to give up everything you knew for me." James took a long breath as he figured out his next words. "So, yeah I have a choice. The old James Bond would have chosen MI6 without question but I'm not him any longer...and this James Bond chooses you."

"Oh, James."

Le Chifre all but dove on the former agent and held him tightly refusing to let go in case it was a dream. Le Chifre thanked any deity that was listening when he realised it was no dream, James had really chosen him, evil unworthy him. It was only when Bond raised his hand to wipe away tears that Le Chiffre realised he was he was crying, since James had woken up the older man had wanted only him and James was going to stay with him and fulfil that desire. Suddenly James cupped his face and pulled him to meet his blue eyes.

"You sell one more gun, a grenade, anything and I will kill you."

His words were soft but Le Chiffre could see the true threat in his eyes, James may have chosen Le Chiffre but he was still James, still had his morals and limits.

"Deal. As long as I get to keep you I'll do anything you want."

"You said we had retired when I first woke up. I want that to be true."

"Anything you want." Le Chiffre repeated.

"I love you, Le Chiffre."

"I love you too, James. Always."

The End.

'Inside each of us, there is the seed of both good and evil. It's a constant struggle as to which one will win. And one cannot exist without the other.'

-Eric Burdon